EVALUATION OF EFFICACY AND SAFETY OF GLUCOSAMINE AND CHONDROITIN SULPHATE IN OSTEOARTHRITIS OF KNEE
Osteoarthritis (OA) is one of the most common forms of arthritis worldwide and also it‟s very common in Asiatic population. The present study was designed to evaluate the safety and efficacy of combination of Glucosamine and Chondroitin sulphate in treating knee pain related to osteoarthritis. Forty-six patients of either sex between age group of 40-70 years having mild to moderate osteoarthritis were included in this study after fulfilling the inclusion and exclusion criteria. All the patients enrolled for the present study were from out-patient Department of Orthopedics, Karpaga Vinayaga Institute of Medical Sciences, Madurantagam, Kancheepuram District. The OA patients were selected according to codified diagnostic criteria of Lequesne‟s and the majority of enrolled patients were women as expected. Both the groups were assessed for pain and mobility, using spontaneous as well as visual analogue scale for the pain index score, 15metre walking time (sec), using joint mobility scale, circumference and degree of flexion of the most affected knee joint. Irrespective of the stage of the disease (i.e.,slight/moderate clinical and radiological stages being represented), patient who received oral Glucosamine and Chondroi tin sulphate, showed significant improvement in overall comp osite scores as compared to placebo at the end of the trial. In this study the treatment with Glucosamine and Chondroitin sulphate resulted in a significantly higher improvement rate 20 -70% in various evaluation parameters, which is consistent with that, found in other trials of conventional drug treatment of OA. The beneficial effects of Glucosamine and Chondroitin sulphate developed slowly over time. Good clinical improvement was noted after four weeks of treatment and there was a significant improvement at the end of eight weeks. In conclusion the results of the present study confirm that, glucosamine and chondroitin sulphate are safe and efficacious in the treatment of osteoarthritis. The present findings suggest that, combination therapy of glucosamine and chondroitin sulphate may be a valuable agent for the management of osteoarthritis of knee