Comparative analyses of the effects of Glucosamine and Chondroitin Sulphate Iontophoresis on Cartilage Thickening, Interleukine-6 and Uric Acid in patients with Knee Osteoarthritis

Abstract

This study compared the chondroprotective actions of glucosamine and chondroitin sulphate iontophoresis for
cartilage remodeling using Interleukine-6 and Uric Acid as biomarkers. 78 participants with grade II knee OA were
randomly assigned to 3 groups. Group one participants received 1g of glucosamine sulphate (GS) while group two
received 1g of chondroitin sulphate (CS) through iontophoresis (40mA- min as dosage). Group three participants
served as control. The serum concentrations of IL–6 and uric acid were determined while the cartilage thickness
was measured using a 7- to 12-MHz linear probe. Descriptive statistics and ANOVA were used to analyze the
data. There were significant reductions in the concentrations of interleukin-6 and uric acid at 12th week compared
to baseline for the 3 groups (p = 0.01). The IL–6 in the CS group was significantly lower compared to that of
the GS group (p = 0.01). After 12 weeks, across the 3 groups, no significant changes were observed in uric acid
concentrations and sonographic features (JSW and ICT). The administration of both drugs significantly reduced
inflammatory reactions. However, CS significantly lowered IL–6 compared to GS but there was no significant
effect on uric acid concentration. Also, there was no significant change in cartilage thickening after 12 weeks.