Cochrane · systematic review · CD005614
Chondroitin for osteoarthritis
Singh, JA, Noorbaloochi, S, MacDonald, R, et al. · Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews · 2015 · Cochrane Library
MusculoskeletalAMSTAR 2: not assessed
SoF tableOnly the outcomes this review put in its Summary of Findings table are listed (the Cochrane Handbook caps them at about seven per comparison). Its other analyses are not shown here.
Questions
13
current version
GRADE rated
13
No studies
0
Included studies
NR
No studies 0 · 0%Ungraded 0 · 0%Very low 0 · 0%Low 5 · 38.5%Moderate 5 · 38.5%High 3 · 23.1%
Ungraded means an effect was reported without a GRADE rating; it is not a gap. No studies means the review found nothing to answer the question. The six categories are a display order, not a score.
Questions and results
Chondroitin versus placebo for osteoarthritis
Population: patients with osteoarthritis
| Outcome | Effect | Evidence | Status / GRADE |
|---|---|---|---|
Pain on a 0 to 100 mm scale ‐ Short‐term studies (< 6 months)—dose ≥ 800 mg/d Chondroitin vs placebo | no estimate extracted | 8 studies · 1077 participants | Low Downgraded: risk of bias, inconsistency |
Pain on a 0 to 100 scale ‐ Long‐term studies (≥ 6 months)—dose ≥ 800 mg/d Chondroitin vs placebo | no estimate extracted | 6 studies · 989 participants | Low Downgraded: risk of bias, inconsistency |
WOMAC MCII Pain subscale (reduction in knee pain by 20%) ‐ Long‐term studies (≥ 6 months)—dose ≥ 800 mg/d Chondroitin vs placebo | RR 1.12 [1.01, 1.24] | 2 studies · 1253 participants | High |
Composite Measure of Pain, Function and Disability as Chondroitin vs placebo | no estimate extracted | 7 studies · 903 participants | Moderate Downgraded: risk of bias, imprecision, inconsistency |
Radiographic Outcome: Reduction in Minimum Joint Space Width (JSW) in mm ‐ Long‐term studies (≥ 6 months)—dose ≥ 800 mg/d Scale: millimeters (smaller decrease in reduction in minimum joint space width is better) Chondroitin vs placebo | no estimate extracted | 2 studies · 922 participants | High |
Withdrawals due to adverse events Chondroitin vs placebo | RR 1.08 [0.74, 1.57] | 10 studies · 2406 participants | Moderate Downgraded: risk of bias, imprecision, inconsistency |
Number of serious adverse events Chondroitin vs placebo | OR 0.4 [0.19, 0.82] | 6 studies · 954 participants | Moderate Downgraded: risk of bias, imprecision, inconsistency |
Chondroitin with or without glucosamine versus placebo/control for osteoarthritis (studies with estimated SDs not analyzed)
Population: participants with osteoarthritis
| Outcome | Effect | Evidence | Status / GRADE |
|---|---|---|---|
Pain (short‐ and long‐term) Scale from 0 to 100 mm (lower is better) Chondroitin with or without glucosamine vs placebo/control | no estimate extracted | 17 studies · 2262 participants | Low Downgraded: risk of bias, inconsistency |
WOMAC MCII Pain subscale (reduction in knee pain by 20%) Long‐term studies (≥ 6 months) dose ≥ 800 mg/d Chondroitin with or without glucosamine vs placebo/control | RR 1.12 [1.01, 1.24] | 2 studies · 1253 participants | High |
Composite Measure of Pain, Function and Disability as assessed through Lequesne's index Scale from 0 to 24 (lower indicates less pain and disability) Chondroitin with or without glucosamine vs placebo/control | no estimate extracted | 10 studies · 1756 participants | Low Downgraded: inconsistency |
Chondroitin with or without glucosamine versus placebo/control for osteoarthritis (sensitivity analysis including studies with estimated SDs)
Population: participants with osteoarthritis
| Outcome | Effect | Evidence | Status / GRADE |
|---|---|---|---|
Pain (short‐ and long‐term) Scale from 0 to 100 (lower is better) Chondroitin with or without glucosamine vs placebo/control | no estimate extracted | 22 studies · 3038 participants | Low Downgraded: risk of bias, inconsistency |
Physical function (short‐ and long‐term) Scale from 0 to 100 (lower is better) Chondroitin with or without glucosamine vs placebo/control | no estimate extracted | 5 studies · 1163 participants | Moderate Downgraded: risk of bias |
Composite Measure of Pain, Function and Disability as assessed through Lequesne's index (short‐ and long‐term) Scale from 0 to 24 (lower indicates less pain and disability) Chondroitin with or without glucosamine vs placebo/control | no estimate extracted | 16 studies · 2334 participants | Moderate Downgraded: risk of bias |