ObjectiveTo study the effectiveness and safety of glucosamine for osteoarthritis (OA) in Asian population.
MethodDatabases of PubMed, Embase, CNKI, VIP and Wanfang were searched from the time of establishment till May 2014 and controlled trials of glucosamine compared with placebo or nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) were included. Quality evaluation and Meta-analysis by using RevMan 5.1 were performed.
ResultsA total of 17 studies including 2 251 cases were included. The efficiency rate in the glucosamine group was higher than that in the NSAIDs group[OR=3.03, 95% CI (1.78, 5.18), P<0.000 1]. The efficiency rate in the glucosamine combined NSAIDs group was higher than that in the NSAIDs group[OR=4.30,95%CI (1.84,10.06),P=0.000 8]. The safety analysis showed that the adverse event rate in the glucosamine group was lower than that in the NSAIDs group[OR=0.23,95%CI (0.14,0.37),P<0.000 01], while the difference between the glucosamine combined NSAIDs group and the NSAIDs group was not statistically significant[OR=0.84, 95%CI (0.50, 1.41), P=0.50].
ConclusionsCompared with NSAIDs, glucosamine is better and safer for OA treatment in Asian population.
