Effects of glucosamine in patients with osteoarthritis of the knee: a systematic review and meta-analysis

What this study found

Glucosamine reduced pain modestly compared with placebo on visual analog scale (VAS) pain (SMD −0.19; 95% CI −0.36 to −0.03) but had a small, non-significant effect on WOMAC pain (SMD −0.04; 95% CI −0.13 to 0.06). A Japanese JKOM analysis suggested glucosamine was superior to placebo for knee OA symptoms. When glucosamine was combined with chondroitin, pain reduction was greater and statistically significant (SMD −0.45; 95% CI −0.81 to −0.09). Health-related quality of life measured by WOMAC showed little or no improvement in physical function or total scores, whereas JKOM indicated…

Study & population

Randomized controlled trials (mostly double-blind, placebo-controlled) enrolling adults with knee osteoarthritis from multiple countries (Japan, USA, Canada, India, Spain/Portugal, Australia, Italy); included both sexes; some cross-over designs.

Intervention

Oral glucosamine regimens; commonly 1500 mg/day; salt forms include glucosamine sulfate or glucosamine hydrochloride; sometimes N-acetyl glucosamine; duration from 6 weeks to 2 years; some regimens co-administered with chondroitin sulfate or other supplements.

Key limitation

Limitations include many trials using glucosamine with other supplements (notably chondroitin), making it hard to isolate glucosamine's effect; heterogeneity in glucosamine forms/brands; small sample sizes in many studies; varying risk of bias with allocation concealment described in only about seven trials; diverse…

View full study detailsView sourceOpen PDF