The research team plans to update subgroup data in the OA Trial Bank every five years. They’ll continue to contact clinical trial researchers to encourage them to contribute data to the project.
Future studies should look more closely at knee versus hip osteoarthritis and specific supplement types such as glucosamine sulfate versus glucosamine hydrochloride, the Bierma-Zeinstra’s team wrote July 28 online in Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases.
“Consumers should be cautious about spending money on unproven treatments,” said Dr. C. Kent Kwoh, director of the University of Arizona Arthritis Center in Tucson.
For instance, side effects of glucosamine include heartburn, drowsiness, headaches, allergic reactions, weight gain, diarrhea and abdominal pain, said Kwoh, who wasn’t involved in the study.
“Most consumers believe that, as a ‘natural product,’ glucosamine is safe, but there are potential side effects,” he told Reuters Health by email. “There is very little evidence that oral glucosamine is beneficial for pain.”
Reference
Runhaar J, Rozendaal RM, Middelkoop MV, et al. Subgroup analyses of the effectiveness of oral glucosamine for knee and hip osteoarthritis: a systematic review and individual patient data meta-analysis from the OA trail bank. Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases. 2017 Jul 28. [Epub ahead of print]
