The Pharmaceutical Journal
Vol 270 No 7234 p142
1 February 2003

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British Journal of Sports Medicine abstract (more)

Further evidence supports use of glucosamine for knee pain

People who suffer from regular knee pain may benefit from taking glucosamine supplements, say Australian researchers. They suggest that glucosamine may be a potential treatment for degenerative joint disease by limiting further degeneration and promoting tissue repair.

The researchers randomly assigned 46 patients with chronic knee pain to receive either glucosamine 2g or placebo daily. The patients were all aged between 20 and 70 years and regularly suffered knee pain.

Throughout the three-month trial, knee pain and mobility were assessed at regular intervals using clinical and functional tests, two questionnaires and subjective patient evaluations. Mobility improved over time in both groups of patients, but this happened more quickly in the patients treated with glucosamine.

By week eight, patients treated with glucosamine had better quality of life scores (P<0.05) and lower knee pain scores (P<0.05) than those given placebo.

By week 12, almost nine out of 10 (88 per cent) of those treated with glucosamine said their knee pain had lessened compared with only three (17 per cent) in the group given the placebo.

The authors conclude that 2g of glucosamine daily can provide some degree of pain relief and improve mobility in patients with chronic knee pain resulting from previous cartilage damage or possibly osteoarthritis (British Journal of Sports Medicine 2003;37:45).

The results of the study support previous data that show glucosamine delays the progression of osteoarthritis in the knee joint (PJ, 26 October 2002, p594).