To assess the efficacy and safety of arthroscopic surgery associated with platelet-rich plasma (PRP) infusion in treating knee osteoarthritis (KOA). PubMed, EMBASE, ScienceDirect, Cochrane Library, China Knowledge Network Database, China VIP Database, Wanfang Database, and China Biomedical Literature Database online database were searched for the case-control trial of arthroscopic surgery associated with PRP infusion in patients with KOA. During the search period of January 2010 through May 2022, two researchers independently extracted the data. With RevMan5.3, we performed a meta-analysis on the collected data. A total of six clinical controlled studies were included, including 333 individuals. Compared with the control group treated only by arthroscopic surgery, the results showed that the visual analogue scores of patients in the arthroscopic surgery and PRP infusion group were significantly lower at 3, 6 and 12 months after operation, and the Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index were significantly lower at 3, 6 and 12 months after operation (p < .05). The meta-analysis of Hospital for Special Surgery (HSS) knee score and Lisum knee score (LKSS) showed that postoperative HSS score, LKSS score at 3, 6, and 12 months after operation, and SF-36 quality of life score at 6 and 12 months after operation were higher (p < .05). Arthroscopic debridement associated with PRP is more successful in relieving knee pain and enhancing knee joint function than arthroscopic debridement in treating KOA. The treatment scheme deserves to be popularized in clinical practice, but further research and longer interventions will be needed to validate it, using high-quality methods.