Language: English
The healthcare portal for patients and the general public in Europe
This service contains links to third party websites. EPG Patient Direct is not in a position to verify this information and cannot be held responsible for the accuracy of the content contained.
30 Sep 2008
Dietary supplements and chondroitin sulphate perform no better than a placebo in slowing the rate of cartilage loss in the knees of patients suffering from osteoarthritis, a study has suggested.
Led by staff from US academic institution the University of Utah and published in the October issue of Arthritis and Rheumatism, the study investigated whether these supplements could reduce the structural damage of osteoarthritis.
None of the medication studied had a clinically significant effect on slowing the rate of joint space width loss, which is the distance between the end of joint bones.
Lead investigator Dr Allen Sawitzke, from the university, commented: "No treatment achieved what was predefined to be a clinically important reduction in joint space width loss."
Dr Josephine Briggs, one of the study's funders, said the results of the research provide "important insights" for future research in terms of identifying patients who will respond best to supplements.
Click here to visit the Arthritis Quick Guide
Delicious
Reddit
Facebook
StumbleUpon
