| A double-blind therapeutic investigation was performed on 178 Chinese
patients suffering from osteoarthritis of the knee randomized into
two groups, one treated for 4 weeks with glucosamine sulfate (GS, CAS
29031-19-4, Viartril-S) at the daily dose of 1,500 mg and the other
with ibuprofen (IBU, CAS 15687-27-1) at the daily dose of 1,200 mg.
Knee pain at rest, at movement and at pressure, knee swelling,
improvement and therapeutic utility as well as adverse events and
drop-outs were recorded after 2 and 4 weeks of treatment. The
variables were recorded also after 2 weeks of treatment
discontinuation in order to appreciate the remnant therapeutic
effect. Both GS and IBU significantly reduced the symptoms of
osteoarthritis with the trend of GS to be more effective. After 2
weeks of drug discontinuation there was a remnant therapeutic effect
in both groups, with the trend to be more pronounced in the GS group.
GS was significantly better tolerated than IBU, as shown by the
adverse drug reactions (6% in the patients of the GS group and 16% in
the IBU group--p = 0.02) and by the drug-related drop-outs (0% of the
patients in the GS group and 10% in the IBU group--p = 0.0017). The
better tolerability of GS is explained by its mode of action, because
GS specifically curbs the pathogenic mechanisms of osteoarthritis and
does not inhibit the cyclo-oxygenases as the non-steroidal anti-
inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) do, with the consequent anti-inflammatory
analgesic activities but also with the several adverse reactions due
to this not targeted effect. The present study confirms that GS is a
selective drug for osteoarthritis, as effective on the symptoms of
the disease as NSAIDs but significantly better tolerated. For these
properties GS seems particularly indicated in the long-term
treatments needed in osteoarthritis.
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