Nutramax to form expert panel to improve G/C guidelines
EDGEWOOD, Md. — Nutramax Laboratories Consumer Care on Tuesday announced plans to assemble a panel of joint health experts to review current American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons guidance on the use of glucosamine/chondroitin sulfate supplements for joint health. The panel will focus specifically on the most recent AAOS Evidence-based Guideline for using joint health supplements and provide its recommendation based on a growing body of clinical evidence.
"The very positive results from recent trials of glucosamine and chondroitin sulfate support our published research from 1999 and 2000," stated Robert Henderson, chairman Nutramax Laboratories. "In light of those results, it is time to start a dialog with the AAOS to review the accumulated clinical evidence regarding the combined use of glucosamine and chondroitin sulfate for joint health."
Recently published randomized, controlled trials using high-quality, pharmaceutical-grade glucosamine and chondroitin sulfate, at a daily dose of 1,500 and 1,200 milligrams, respectively, have produced very positive outcomes for patient populations in the studies.
Under the guidance of Brian Cornblatt, medical director of Nutramax Laboratories, the panel of experts will review the available clinical evidence supporting the use of glucosamine/chondroitin sulfate supplementation in promoting joint health, and work with the AAOS guideline committee to explore consideration of this evidence in the third edition of the Evidence-based Guideline. The members of the task force will focus special attention on the following recent publications:
MOVES (Multicentre Osteoarthritis InterVEntion trial with Sysadoa): This study provides the most recent evidence to support the use of glucosamine hydrochloride and chondroitin sulfate, at a daily dose of 1,500 and 1,200 milligrams, respectively, in managing joint health in a wide variety of patient populations. The results were published in January 2015 in the online edition of Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases;
GAIT (Glucosamine/Chondroitin Arthritis Intervention Trial): Published in The New England Journal of Medicine in 2006, the GAIT study showed that glucosamine hydrochloride and chondroitin sulfate, at the same daily dose as used in the MOVES trial, may be a viable option in a subgroup of patients with moderate to severe joint discomfort. The MOVES study was developed as an extension of the GAIT study;
Brazilian Trial (Prospective, Multi-Center, Randomized Controlled Trial): In an international, head-to-head study involving more than 900 participants, a team of Brazilian researchers found that Nutramax Laboratories' CosaminDS, which contains 1,500 mg of glucosamine hydrochloride and 1,200 mg of chondroitin sulfate in capsule form, and a Brazilian prescription brand containing the same doses of these ingredients either as a sachet or a capsule formulation, were equally effective. The researchers, who published their results in Clinical Rheumatology in August 2014, reported statistically significant improvements in joint comfort and physical function as measured by change from baseline using a visual analog scale and the Lequesne Index, a measure of osteoarthritis severity. They also observed no significant alterations in laboratory values assessing safety, including fasting glycemia; and
Cochrane Review: In a review published in January 2015, the Cochrane Collaborative characterized chondroitin sulfate as more effective than placebo in improving pain and physical function in patients with osteoarthritis, with a lower risk of adverse events. The Cochrane review - the most comprehensive review of chondroitin sulfate published to date - examined data from 43 randomized, controlled, short-term trials involving 4,962 participants treated with chondroitin sulfate and 4,148 participants who were given a placebo or another control, and concluded that the benefit of chondroitin sulfate in these studies was clinically meaningful.
"Our aim is to explore whether current guidelines accurately reflect real-world experience and recent clinical evidence supporting the use of high-quality glucosamine and chondroitin to support joint health," said Nicholas DiNubile, an orthopedic surgeon. "It is important that we open discussions with our colleagues about the role of supplements and to achieve a better understanding of when and where high-quality supplements fit into the overall joint health management paradigm."