Combined chondroitin sulphate and glucosamine hyndrocholoride ‘effective treatment for knee osteoarthritis’, study finds

A new study has revealed combining chondroitin sulphate and glucosamine hydrochloride (CS+GH) is an effective means of relieving pain in people with knee osteoarthritis. 

Led by professor Marc C Hochberg of the University of Maryland School of Medicine in the US, a team of scientists undertook research to determine whether CS+GH is as successful a treatment for the condition as the drug celecoxib, a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID).

Some 606 patients in France, Germany, Poland and Spain who had knee osteoarthritis with moderate-to-severe pain were treated with either the new combination or celecoxib over a six-month period. They were assessed for any reduction in pain, as well as secondary outcomes regarding function and stiffness, and effusion and swelling. 

It was found that both treatment groups experienced considerable reductions in pain. Some 79.7 per cent of the people in the CS+GH group and 79.2 per cent of individuals treated with celecoxib fulfilled predefined pain-reduction criteria.

Joint swelling reduction of more than 50 per cent was reported in both groups, with a similar drop seen for effusion. No notable differences were witnessed for other secondary outcomes and any adverse effects were minimal and evenly distributed across both groups.

 The researchers, whose findings were first published in the journal Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases, concluded that CS+GH has a comparable level of efficiency to celecoxib for treating knee osteoarthritis and represents a safe option for reducing pain stiffness, functional limitation and joint swelling/effusion.

 A spokeswoman for Arthritis Research UK expressed surprise at the findings. "Previous trials of glucosamine hydrochloride were unconvincing and showed  that it was little better than a placebo (dummy pill) in reliving the  pain of knee osteoarthritis."

 "The other type of glucosamine  - glucosamine sulphate, which is much more widely taken  - appears to be more effective. However, there’s a large, very mixed body of evidence which suggest that glucosamine sulphate and chondroitin may offer modest pain relief for some people with knee osteoarthritis, without side-effects,"she added.

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