title: Additive effects of glucosamine or risedronate for the treatment of osteoarthritis of the knee combined with home exercise: a prospective randomized 18-month trial.
abstract: We have previously demonstrated the efficacy of therapeutic exercise for osteoarthritis (OA) of the knee. This study was performed to examine the additive effects of glucosamine or risedronate on the exercise therapy. In this study, 142 female patients with moderate OA of the knee, who had been recommended to undergo home exercise at the first visit to the hospital, were randomly given glucosamine hydrochloride, risedronate, or no additive. Although improvement after 18 months was observed in all groups using individual scales for evaluation of pain and function of the knee, no significant differences were observed between the groups regarding any of the scales, indicating no significant additive effect of glucosamine or risedronate. One reason for the lack of effect of glucosamine or risedronate on OA of the knee may be that the effect of these agents was occluded by the effect of therapeutic exercise to improve pain and function of the knee. This finding means that even if glucosamine and risedronate were to have an effect on OA of the knee, the effect would not be greater than the effect of knee exercise to improve the symptoms.
authors.affiliation: Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Juntendo University School of Medicine, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, 113-8421, Japan.
authors.forename: Takayuki
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Kawasaki
authors.forename: Hisashi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Kurosawa
authors.forename: Hiroshi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Ikeda
authors.forename: Sung-Gon
authors.initials: SG
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Aki
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Osawa
authors.forename: Yuji
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Takazawa
authors.forename: Mitsuaki
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kubota
authors.forename: Muneaki
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ishijima
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000894:Anti-Inflammatory Agents, Non-Steroidal / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000627:therapeutic use; D050071:Bone Density Conservation Agents / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D004359:Drug Therapy, Combination; D012968:Etidronic Acid / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000627:therapeutic use; D005081:Exercise Therapy; D005260:Female; D005944:Glucosamine / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D006801:Humans; D007719:Knee Joint / Q000187:drug effects*; D008875:Middle Aged; D010003:Osteoarthritis / Q000188:drug therapy*; D011446:Prospective Studies; D000068296:Risedronic Acid
chemical_list: D000894:Anti-Inflammatory Agents, Non-Steroidal; D050071:Bone Density Conservation Agents; D000068296:Risedronic Acid; D012968:Etidronic Acid; D005944:Glucosamine