Abstract:Objective To compare the therapeutic effects of intra-articular injection of umbilical cord blood mesenchymal stem cells and of synovial-derived mesenchymal stem cells in treatment of articular cartilage injury of knee joint. Methods Using a retrospective, random sampling and control study method, 48 patients with knee articular cartilage injury from September 2013 to August 2016 were selected as the research objects. According to the different treatment methods, the patients were divided into the control group and the observation group(n=24, each). The umbilical cord blood mesenchymal stem cell therapy was given in control group, and synovial mesenchymal stem cell therapy was given in observation group. The clinical efficacy, Lequesne index score of knee joint, visual analog scale(VAS) and complications were observed and compared between two groups. Results The excellent rate in observation group was significantly higher than that in control group 6 months after treatment (95.8% vs 66.7%, P<0.05). After treatment, the Lequesne index scores in observation group [(86.35±11.34)points vs (56.25±12.54)points]and in control group[(75.85±10.74)points vs (56.25±9.11)points] were significantly higher than those before treatment, and the score in observation group was significantly higher than that in control group (all P<0.01). After treatment, VAS score in observation group was significantly lower than that in control group [(2.11±1.54)points vs (3.61±1.44)points, P<0.01]. The incidence of complications such as thromboembolism, pulmonary infection and lower extremity swelling was 8.3% in observation group and 25.0% in control group, there was no statistical difference between two groups even though the incidence of complications was lower in observation group(P>0.05). Conclusion Compares with umbilical cord blood mesenchymal stem cells, synovial mesenchymal stem cells can improve the function of knee joint, relieve pain and have higher safety in the treatment of knee joint cartilage injury.