ObjectiveTo observe the therapeutic effect of electro-acupuncture combined with oral glucosamine hydrochloride capsules in the treatment of knee osteoarthritis, and compare it with the curative effect of the two methods separately. MethodsA total of 168 patients with knee osteoarthritis treated from March 2006 to December 2012 were randomly divided into 3 groups. Electro-acupuncture combined with oral glucosamine hydrochloride capsules were given to the 58 patients in the treatment group, single acupuncture treatment was given to the 57 patients in control group A, and simple oral glucosamine hydrochloride capsules were given to the 53 patients in control group B. The treatment lasted for 6 weeks. Assessment of knee osteoarthritis by Lequesne international standard index number and the total efficiency was carried out before treatment and 3 weeks, 6 weeks and 6 months after treatment, respectively. ResultsThe total effective rate of the treatment group was 91.38%, of control group A was 68.42%, and of control group B was 79.25%. There was a significant difference between the treatment group and control group A, and between the treatment group and control group B (P<0.05). No blood, liver or kidney damage or gastrointestinal adverse reaction occurred among patients in all the three groups. ConclusionThe efficacy of electro-acupuncture plus oral glucosamine hydrochloride capsules is better than simple acupuncture and simple oral glucosamine hydrochloride capsules treatment.
ObjectiveTo observe the efficacy of self-behavior management combined with glucosamine hydrochloride for patients with early knee osteoarthritis. MethodsBetween October 2013 and March 2015, 240 patients with early knee osteoarthritis were randomly assigned to behavior therapy group (n=80) , drug treatment group (n=80) and combined treatment group (n=80) . Patients in the behavior therapy group were treated only by self-behavior management; patients in the drug treatment group were treated by glucosamine hydrochloride (0.48 g, three times per day); patients in the combined treatment group were treated by self-behavior management combined with glucosamine hydrochloride. The effect of treatment, adverse reactions, efficiency and expulsion rate were assessed 4, 8 and 12 weeks after treatment. ResultsThe Lequesne index and the Western Ontario and McMaster Universities osteoarthritis index (WOMAC) significantly decreased from week 4 when compared with week 0 after treatment in the combined treatment group, and there was a significant difference between the combined treatment group and single therapy group at week 8 and 12 (P ＜ 0.05) . The Lequesne index in the behavior therapy group and drug treatment group began to significantly decrease from week 8, and the WOMAC score significantly decreased from week 4 in the drug treatment group and from week 8 in the behavior therapy group. The efficiency increased with the treatment time prolonged in all three groups, but the efficiency in the combined treatment group was significantly higher than the single therapy group (P ＜ 0.05) . The shedding rates in the behavior therapy group, drug treatment group and combined treatment group were respectively 12.5%, 7.5% and 6.3%, without statistically significant difference (P ＞ 0.05) . The adverse reaction rate was low in all the three groups. ConclusionThe self-behavior management combined with glucosamine hydrochloride is an effective, safe and well-tolerated treatment for early knee osteoarthritis.
Objective To compare the clinical efficacy of glucosamine hydrochloride and Chinese traditional medicine of angelicae pubescentis and loranthi decoction in the treatment of knee osteoarthritis. Methods We included 142 patients with mild-to-moderate knee osteoarthritis treated between January 2014 and July 2015. The patients were randomly divided into treatment group and control group. The 72 patients in the treatment group received glucosamine hydrochloride, while the other 70 patients in the control group took oral Chinese medicine of angelicae pubescentis and loranthi decoction. The treatment course was one month. We observed the clinical curative effect of both the two groups. Results After the treatment, the difference in Visual Analogy Score (VAS) and Severity Index of Osteoarthritis (ISOA) in the two groups were significant compared with those before the treatment (P ＜ 0.05) . There were significant differences between the two groups in terms of VAS pain score, ISOA and treatment effectiveness (P ＜ 0.05) . Conclusion Glucosamine hydrochloride can obviously relieve knee osteoarthritis symptoms and improve knee function, which has a better curative effect than the traditional Chinese medicine of angelicae pubescentis and loranthi decoction.
ObjectiveTo observe the clinical effect of combined traditional Chinese and Western medicine in the treatment of knee osteoarthritis (KOA). MethodsA total of 180 KOA patients treated between January 2012 and June 2015 were randomly assigned to 3 groups: Chinese medicine group (group A, n=60) with acupuncture and irradiation therapy of specific electromagnetic wave therapeutic apparatus , western medicine group (group B, n=60) with oral glucosamine hydrochloride tablets and knee joint cavity injection of sodium hyaluronate, and integrated traditional Chinese and Western medicine group (group C, n=60) with treatments combining those in both group A and B. The treatment course was 6 weeks. The Western Ontario & McMaster University (WOMAC) osteoarthritis index score and total effective rate were evaluated before treatment and 2 weeks after treatment, end of treatment and 5 months after treatment. ResultsAfter treatment, the average improvement of WOMAC scores in the three groups was significantly different (P ＜ 0.05) . The total effective rate was 78.33% in group A, 83.33% in group B, and 91.67% in group C. The difference of total effective rate between group C and A, and between group C and B was statistically significant (P＜0.05) ; and it was also statistically significant between group A and B (P ＜ 0.05) . There were two cases of adverse reactions in group A, two in group B, and two in group C, and the reactions were all relatively mild without any serious adverse events. ConclusionsChinese medicine and western medicine are both effective and safe for the treatment of KOA. When they are combined, the effect is further enhanced with no increase of adverse reactions.
ObjectiveTo observe the clinical effect of combined glucosamine hydrochloride and antiosteoporosis drugs in the treatment of senile knee osteoarthritis. MethodsA total of 120 patients with osteoarthritis of the knee treated from January 2014 to December 2015 were randomly divided into observation group and control group with 60 cases in each. The observation group received not only oral glucosamine hydrochloride, but calcium D3, alfacalcidol, and sodium phosphate for anti-osteoporosis treatment, while the control group was only given oral glucosamine hydrochloride. Lequesne score, curative effect and adverse drug reactions were compared between the two groups 2, 4, and 6 weeks after the beginning of treatment. ResultsWithin two weeks of treatment, there was no significant difference between the two groups in the effective rate (P ＞ 0.05) . But four and six weeks after treatment, the efficiency in the observation group was significantly higher than that in the control group (χ2=6.806, P ＜ 0.01; χ2=24.762, P ＜ 0.01) . Four and six weeks after treatment, Lequesne score of the observation group was significantly lower than that of the control group (t=2.199, P ＜ 0.05; t=4.748, P ＜ 0.001) . There was no significant difference in terms of adverse reactions between the two groups before and after treatment (χ2=0.617, P ＞ 0.05) . ConclusionCompared with single hydrochloric amino glucose treatment, glucosamine hydrochloride combined with anti-osteoporosis treatment for senile knee osteoarthritis has better treatment effect without increase in adverse drug reactions, and it is worth of clinical application.
ObjectiveTo evaluate the efficacy of the glucosamine hydrochloride combined with risedronate in the treatment of knee osteoarthritis (KOA) associated with cold pain of knee. MethodsThe clinical data of 50 KOA patients including 25 with cold pain and 25 without cold pain, treated in the Department of Rheumatology between January and December 2015 were collected. The clinical symptoms, Western Ontario and McMater Universities (WOMAC) index of osteoarthritis score, knee cold pain score, knee joint therml texture maps (TTM) score, serum osteoprotegerin (OPG), Dickkopf-1 (DKK-1) , and sclerostin levels (SO) were recorded for comparison between patients with and without cold pain in order to investigate the correlation between these indicators and cold pain degree. Patients in the cold pain group were treated with glucosamine hydrochloride combined with risedronate. Follow-up lasted for six months, and the improvement of above indexes and the treatment safety were analyzed. ResultsThere were significant differences between the two groups in the disease course, TTM score of knee front and popliteal fossa, ΔTTM, DKK-1 and SO (P ＜ 0.05) . After 6 months of treatment, patients in the cold pain group improved significantly in WOMAC score, knee cold pain score, TTM score of knee front and popliteal fossa, ΔTTM, OPG, DKK-1 and SO (P ＜ 0.05) . ConclusionsAs one of the main complaints of patients with advanced OA, knee cold pain is associated with the metabolic activity of osteoclasts. It can be alleviated by the treatment with risedronate combined with glucosamine.
ObjectiveTo observe the effectiveness of oral glucosamine hydrochloride and cupping therapy in the treatment of knee osteoarthritis. MethodsA total of 113 patients treated from February 2013 to February 2015 were randomly divided into three groups. All the three groups of patients underwent conventional treatment. The Cupping treatment group had 39 patients; 37 patients were treated with oral glucosamine hydrochloride, and another 37 patients accepted combined treatments of cupping therapy with oral glucosamine hydrochloride. Six weeks after treatment, pain degree of the patients and Lequesne index were used to assess the clinical efficacy of the treatments. Patients who had oral glucosamine hydrochloride underwent routine examinations of blood and urine, and received liver and kidney examinations. One year later, telephone follow-up was conducted to observe long-term efficacy. ResultsSix weeks after treatment, the combined treatment group was significantly better than the other two groups in terms of pain relief degree and effective rate (P ＜ 0.05) . One year after treatment, the combined treatment group and the oral treatmentgroup had a significant advantage over the cupping treatment group (P ＜ 0.05) , while there was no significant difference between the combined treatment group and oral treatment group. ConclusionsThe combined oral glucosamine hydrochloride and cupping therapy has an obvious short-term efficacy, which quickly relieves pain and improves the activity function of the knee. Oral glucosamine hydrochloride has a very good effect in the long-term treatment of osteoarthritis.
ObjectiveTo investigate the clinical effect of combined air pressure wave and oral glucosamine in the treatment of knee osteoarthritis. MethodsWe chose 200 patients with knee osteoarthritis treated in the Department of Rehabilitation between April 2013 and March 2015 as our research subjects. The patients were randomly divided into observation group and control group with 100 in each. The control group accepted conventional physical therapy, while the observation group underwent normal physical therapy in combination with air pressure wave and oral glucosamine treatment. We compared the two groups in terms of curative effects. ResultsThe total effective rate was not significantly different between the two groups (P＞0.05) , but in terms of efficiency rate, the observation group (85.0%) was significantly superior to the control group (73.0%) (P ＜ 0.05) . ConclusionCombined air pressure wave and oral glucosamine treatment for knee osteoarthritis is high efficient, which is worthy of being popularized.
ObjectiveTo discuss the efficacy and safety of the joint application of oral glucosamine hydrochloride tablets and knee joint cavity ozone injection in the treatment of knee osteoarthritis. MethodsFrom January 2014 to January 2015, 72 patients who matched the criteria of moderate knee osteoarthritis were randomly divided into two groups according to the table of random number: oral glucosamine hydrochloride tablet and knee joint cavity ozone injection group (group G+O) and ozone group (group O). Patients of group G+O orally took glucosamine hydrochloride tablets (0.48 g, 3 times/day) for twelve weeks, and ozone was injected into the patients’ knee joint once a week for the first four weeks. The treatment for group O patients was the same with Group G+O, except that the glucosamine hydrochloride tablets were replaced by glucosamine hydrochloride placebo (2 tablets, 3 times/day, taking orally). We recorded the Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) score, Western Ontario & McMaster University (WOMAC) osteoarthritis index score and the adverse reactions before treatment and in the first, third and sixth month after treatment. ResultsPatients’ VAS scores and WOMAC scores of both the two groups in the first, third and sixth month after treatment were significantly different from those before the treatment (P ＜ 0.05) . In the first month after treatment, there were no significant difference in patients’ VAS scores and WOMAC scores between the two groups (P ＞ 0.05) . In the third and sixth month after treatment, there were significant differences in patients’ VAS scores and WOMAC scores between the two groups (P ＜ 0.05) . There was no obvious adverse reactions during the treatment. ConclusionsThe combined application of oral glucosamine hydrochloride tablets and knee joint cavity ozone injection and the ozone treatment for moderate knee osteoarthritis are both effective, without any adverse reaction. The combined treatment of oral glucosamine hydrochloride tablets and knee joint cavity ozone injection on moderate knee osteoarthritis has better long-term efficacy, and it is worth spreading.
ObjectiveTo compare the clinical efficacy of glucosamine hydrochloride and diacerein for patients with knee osteoarthritis and the MRI variation. MethodsBetween January and June 2014, 90 patients with knee osteoarthritis were randomized into three groups: group A (treated by glucosamine hydrochloride), group B (treated by diacerein) and group C (treated by both glucosamine hydrochloride and diacerein). The score of Western Ontario and McMaster Universities (WOMAC) index of osteoarthritis, MRI cartilage injury Recht grading and the curative effects for bone marrow edema, joint cavity effusion and meniscus injury were compared before and after the treatment. ResultsThe scores of WOMAC after treatment in all the groups were improved, while the therapeutic effect of group C lasted longer when medical treatment suspended. The number of articular surface with different degrees of cartilage injury showed no statistically significant change in all three groups (P ＞ 0.05) . The state of bone marrow edema and joint cavity effusion were improved with a statistically significant difference in all groups (P ＜ 0.05) . Patients with lateral meniscus degeneration in group A and patients with medial meniscal tear in group B both increased with statistically significant differences (P ＜ 0.05) . However, in group C, patients with lateral meniscus degeneration or meniscal tear decreased with statistically significant differences (P ＜ 0.05) . ConclusionsThe treatment for osteoarthritis by glucosamine hydrochloride is effective, and the curative effect lasts longer when treated by both glucosamine hydrochloride and diacerein. Glucosamine hydrochloride ameliorates the bone marrow edema and joint cavity effusion. Treatment together with diacerein leads to a better therapeutic effect for patients with meniscus degeneration, yet further studies are needed to prove its effects in ameliorating cartilage injury.