Copyright: ©Author(s) 2026. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license. No commercial re-use. See permissions. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc.
Multimodality imaging considerations for genicular artery embolization in knee osteoarthritis
Ramanpreet Singh, College of Medicine, Northeast Ohio Medical University, Rootstown, OH 44272, United States
Mina S Makary, Division of Vascular and Interventional Radiology, Department of Radiology, The Ohio State University Medical Center, Columbus, OH 43210, United States
Author contributions: Singh R and Makary MS contributed to the study conception and design, writing-review and editing of the manuscript, commented on previous versions of the manuscript; Singh R contributed to visualization of manuscript; Makary MS contributed to supervision of manuscript, administered the project; and all authors read and approved of the final manuscript.
Conflict-of-interest statement: Singh R and Makary MS declare no conflict of interests for this article.
Corresponding author: Mina S Makary, MD, Doctor, Division of Vascular and Interventional Radiology, Department of Radiology, The Ohio State University Medical Center, 395 W. 12th Ave. 4th Floor Faculty Office Tower, Columbus, OH 43210, United States.
Received: February 24, 2026
Revised: April 7, 2026
Accepted: April 20, 2026
Published online: June 28, 2026
Processing time: 122 Days and 7.5 Hours
Revised: April 7, 2026
Accepted: April 20, 2026
Published online: June 28, 2026
Processing time: 122 Days and 7.5 Hours
Core Tip
Core Tip: Genicular artery embolization (GAE) is increasingly used for inflammation-predominant knee osteoarthritis, making accurate post-procedure imaging interpretation essential. This review summarizes expected magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and radiographic findings after GAE, emphasizes that inflammatory features (synovial enhancement and effusion-synovitis) are the most consistent imaging response signals, and highlights pitfalls in overcalling persistent structural osteoarthritis findings (osteophytes, cartilage defects, joint space narrowing) as treatment failure. Semiquantitative MRI scoring systems used in published GAE studies are reviewed to support consistent assessment and follow-up.