Don’t expect glucosamine/chondroitin to treat knee osteoarthritis
People with knee osteoarthritis who took a placebo for 24 weeks also had about six in ten say the pain eased. Those on glucosamine or chondroitin were only four or five percentage points above that — small enough that it may be chance. Spending 700 to 1800 a year buys an effect that is basically the same as placebo.
Roughly 2–5 RMB per day, or 700–1800 RMB per year.
The GAIT trial enrolled 1,583 people with knee osteoarthritis and followed treatment for 24 weeks. Even in the…
Roughly 2–5 RMB per day, or 700–1800 RMB per year.
The GAIT trial enrolled 1,583 people with knee osteoarthritis and followed treatment for 24 weeks. Even in the placebo (dummy pill) group, 60.1% reported pain relief. Glucosamine was only 3.9 percentage points better (P=0.30), chondroitin 5.3 percentage points better (P=0.17), and the combination 6.5 percentage points better (P=0.09). These differences were too small to rule out chance. In the same trial, the active comparator drug celecoxib was 10.0 percentage points better (P=0.008). These supplements seem worthwhile because “the raw materials for repairing cartilage” sounds precisely suited to the problem, and even a dummy pill was reported to help by six in ten people.
Clegg DO et al. (2006). Glucosamine, chondroitin sulfate, and the two in combination for painful knee osteoarthritis. NEJM. https://doi.org/10.1056/NEJMoa052771
Open source linkControversy: In the same trial, among those who already hurt badly at the start, both together had a response rate of 79.2% versus 54.3% in the control group (P=0.002). The authors say this was dug out of the data afterward and is only a lead, not a conclusion. What actually has evidence for knee osteoarthritis is losing weight and building muscle; see Item 33 in this section (arthroscopic clean-out).