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Research ArticleTools for Practice

Are glucosamine and chondroitin natural remedies for osteoarthritis?

Anthony Train, Samantha Moe and G. Michael Allan
Canadian Family Physician February 2021; 67 (2) 111; DOI: https://doi.org/10.46747/cfp.6702111
Anthony Train
Assistant Professor in the Department of Family Medicine at Queen’s University in Kingston, Ont.
MB ChB MSc CCFP
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Samantha Moe
Clinical Evidence Expert at the College of Family Physicians of Canada.
PharmD
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G. Michael Allan
Director of Programs and Practice Support at the College of Family Physicians of Canada.
MD CCFP
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Clinical question

Do glucosamine (GA) and chondroitin (CD) improve pain for patients with osteoarthritis?

Bottom line

Higher-quality, larger, or publicly funded studies generally do not find GA or CD effective. If studies at higher risk of bias are included, 45% to 55% of patients will have meaningful reduction in pain (ie, ≥ 30% reduced pain) with either treatment compared with 35% to 45% receiving placebo.

Evidence

Results are statistically significant unless indicated.

  • From 11 systematic reviews1 of GA 1500 mg/day versus placebo (2 to 25 RCTs; 414 to 4963 patients), a meta-analysis (9 RCTs; N = 1643) showed 47% of patients treated with GA and 37% treated with placebo attained meaningful pain reduction after 4 to 156 weeks (number needed to treat of 11).2

    • -Another meta-analysis had similar findings.3

    • - On a 100-point pain scale (meta-analysis4 rerun by PEER) with baseline pain of 52, placebo reduced pain roughly 13 points. In larger RCTs, pain reduction with GA was the same as placebo. In smaller RCTs, GA reduced pain by roughly 12 points more than placebo.

  • From 11 systematic reviews1 of CD 800 to 1200 mg/day versus placebo (6 to 18 RCTs; 362 to 4044 patients), a meta-analysis (9 RCTs; N = 2477) showed 57% of patients treated with CD and 45% of patients receiving placebo attained meaningful pain reduction after 12 to 48 weeks (number needed to treat of 9).2 Another meta-analysis found no difference (1 RCT; N = 330).5

    • - On a 100-point pain scale (meta-analysis4 rerun by PEER) with baseline pain of 56, placebo reduced pain roughly 19 points, and CD reduced pain roughly 4 points more than placebo in larger RCTs and roughly 12 points more than placebo in smaller RCTs.

  • In 6 systematic reviews1 of combined GA and CD versus placebo, only 1 RCT examined meaningful pain reduction and found the combined effect similar to that of the components alone.5 The change on a 100-point pain scale found combined effect not different from placebo.4,6

  • Limitations: mostly knee osteoarthritis studies.2

    • - There was no benefit of GA or CD compared with placebo in publicly funded,2 higher-quality, or larger RCTs.3,7,8

Context

  • Many meta-analyses report “standard mean differences,” which are difficult to apply clinically and are not reported here.1 Adverse events were infrequently reported.

Implementation

Interpreting pain studies is tricky: various pain scales, cutoffs, and time points are used, and results are reported differently. We focused on the proportion of patients with meaningful improvement in pain, as patients understand this best.9 Knowing the change on common pain scales (eg, visual analogue scale) is helpful to evaluate research. Clinicians can use these to ascertain the reliability of effects and explain the benefits of treatment to patients. The online pain calculator10 or PEER decision aids can help.11

Notes

Tools for Practice articles in Canadian Family Physician are adapted from articles published on the Alberta College of Family Physicians (ACFP) website, summarizing medical evidence with a focus on topical issues and practice-modifying information. The ACFP summaries and the series in Canadian Family Physician are coordinated by Dr G. Michael Allan, and the summaries are co-authored by at least 1 practising family physician and are peer reviewed. Feedback is welcome and can be sent to toolsforpractice{at}cfpc.ca. Archived articles are available on the ACFP website: www.acfp.ca.

Footnotes

  • Competing interests

    None declared

  • The opinions expressed in Tools for Practice articles are those of the authors and do not necessarily mirror the perspective and policy of the Alberta College of Family Physicians.

  • This article is eligible for Mainpro+ certified Self-Learning credits. To earn credits, go to www.cfp.ca and click on the Mainpro+ link.

  • La traduction en français de cet article se trouve à www.cfp.ca dans la table des matières du numéro de février 2021 à la page e59.

  • Copyright © the College of Family Physicians of Canada

References

  1. 1.↵
    1. Train A,
    2. Moe S,
    3. Allan GM.
    Glucosamine & chondroitin: natural remedies for osteoarthritis? Tools for Practice #276. Edmonton, AB: Alberta College of Family Physicians; 2020. Available from: https://gomainpro.ca/wp-content/uploads/tools-for-practice/1604004778_tfp276glucosamineandchondroitin.pdf. Accessed 2020 Nov 24.
  2. 2.↵
    1. Ton J,
    2. Perry D,
    3. Thomas B,
    4. Allan GM,
    5. Lindblad AJ,
    6. McCormack J, et al.
    PEER umbrella systematic review of systematic reviews. Management of osteoarthritis in primary care. Can Fam Physician 2020;66:e89-98.
    OpenUrlAbstract/FREE Full Text
  3. 3.↵
    1. Towheed TE,
    2. Maxwell L,
    3. Anastassiades TP,
    4. Shea B,
    5. Houpt J,
    6. Robinson V, et al.
    Glucosamine therapy for treating osteoarthritis. Cochrane Database Syst Rev 2005;(2):CD002946.
  4. 4.↵
    1. Simental-Mendía M,
    2. Sánchez-García A,
    3. Vilchez-Cavazos F,
    4. Acosta-Olivo CA,
    5. Peña-Martínez VM,
    6. Simental-Mendía LE.
    Effect of glucosamine and chondroitin sulfate in symptomatic knee osteoarthritis: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized placebo-controlled trials. Rheumatol Int 2018;38(8):1413-28.
    OpenUrlPubMed
  5. 5.↵
    1. Singh JA,
    2. Noorbaloochi S,
    3. MacDonald R,
    4. Maxwell LJ.
    Chondroitin for osteoarthritis. Cochrane Database Syst Rev 2015;(1):CD005614.
  6. 6.↵
    1. Gregori D,
    2. Giacovelli G,
    3. Minto C,
    4. Barbetta B,
    5. Gualtieri F,
    6. Azzolina D, et al.
    Association of pharmacological treatments with long-term pain control in patients with knee osteoarthritis: a systematic review and meta-analysis. JAMA 2018;320(24):2564-79.
    OpenUrlCrossRefPubMed
  7. 7.↵
    1. Eriksen P,
    2. Bartels EM,
    3. Altman RD,
    4. Bliddal H,
    5. Juhl C,
    6. Christensen R.
    Risk of bias and brand explain the observed inconsistency in trials on glucosamine for symptomatic relief of osteoarthritis: a meta-analysis of placebo-controlled trials. Arthritis Care Res (Hoboken) 2014;66(12):1844-55.
  8. 8.↵
    1. Black C,
    2. Clar C,
    3. Henderson R,
    4. MacEachern C,
    5. McNamee P,
    6. Quayyum Z, et al.
    The clinical effectiveness of glucosamine and chondroitin supplements in slowing or arresting progression of osteoarthritis of the knee: a systematic review and economic evaluation. Health Technol Assess 2009;13(52):1-148.
    OpenUrlCrossRefPubMed
  9. 9.↵
    1. Zipkin DA,
    2. Umscheid CA,
    3. Keating NL,
    4. Allen E,
    5. Aung K,
    6. Beyth R, et al.
    Evidence-based risk communication: a systematic review. Ann Intern Med 2014;161(4):270-80.
    OpenUrlCrossRefPubMed
  10. 10.↵
    1. PEER
    . Comparing treatment options for pain: the C-TOP tool. Edmonton, AB: Alberta College of Family Physicians; 2021. Available from: https://pain-calculator.com/. Accessed 2021 Jan 7.
  11. 11.↵
    1. Lindblad AJ,
    2. McCormack J,
    3. Korownyk CS,
    4. Kolber MR,
    5. Ton J,
    6. Perry D, et al.
    PEER simplified decision aid: osteoarthritis treatment options in primary care. Can Fam Physician 2020;66:191-3 (Eng), e86-8 (Fr).
    OpenUrlFREE Full Text
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Canadian Family Physician: 67 (2)
Canadian Family Physician
Vol. 67, Issue 2
1 Feb 2021
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Are glucosamine and chondroitin natural remedies for osteoarthritis?
Anthony Train, Samantha Moe, G. Michael Allan
Canadian Family Physician Feb 2021, 67 (2) 111; DOI: 10.46747/cfp.6702111

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