Susanne X. Wang, Sheila Laverty, Mircea Dumitriu, Anna Plaas, Marc D. Grynpas
The objective of this study was to quantify periarticular subchondral bone changes in a rabbit model of experimental osteoarthritis (OA), and to determine the effects of continuous administration of a clinically relevant dose of glucosamine HCl on subchondral bone changes in this model. Anterior cruciate ligament transection (ACLT) was performed on the left femorotibial joints of 16 rabbits to induce OA. Ten rabbits that did not undergo ACLT served as unoperated controls. Eight rabbits that underwent ACLT and 6 control rabbits were treated with 100 mg of glucosamine daily, and the others were given a placebo. Eight weeks after ACLT, most of the operated joints had various degrees of cartilage damage and fibrillation. Compared with the control group, the ACLT group had significantly increased subchondral bone turnover and lower BMD, bone volume, connectivity, and bone mineralization. The high bone turnover was significantly reduced in glucosamine-treated animals that underwent ACLT. In fact, there were no significant differences between the ACLT/glucosamine group and the control/glucosamine group in most of the bone parameters studied. The authors conclude that this study shows that subchondral bone turnover, structure, and mineralization are significantly altered in the early stages of experimental OA, and that these changes are attenuated by glucosamine treatment.
Arthritis & Rheumatism, Volume 56, Issue 5 , Pages 1537 – 1548