REVIEW   

Minerva Ortopedica e Traumatologica 2014 February;65(1):61-72

Copyright © 2014 EDIZIONI MINERVA MEDICA

lingua: Inglese

Nutraceuticals and chondroprotective agents for the treatment of osteoarthritis: a narrative review. A controversial resource in the treatment of osteoarthritis

Sansone V. ^{1, 2}, Consonni O. ^{1, 2}, Maiorano E. ^{1, 2} ✉

¹ Orthopaedic Department University of Milan, Milan, Italy; ² Istituto Ortopedico Galeazzi IRCCS, Milan, Italy

There are many dietary supplements, chondroprotective agents, disease-modifying agents and nutraceuticals that have been developed and promoted for treating patients affected by osteoarthritis (OA). They can be, and often are, marketed without undergoing a rigorous scientific evaluation. In the literature several in vitro- or in vivo-trials concerning these compounds can be found, but there is a lack of high-quality, long-term, prospective, comparative studies able to demonstrate unequivocally their effectiveness in the treatment of OA. This is a narrative review concerning the commonest chondroprotective agents found on the market, and assesses whether, on the basis of the current literature, these agents may have a role in the treatment of OA.