A new study, entitled "Efficacy of Methylsulfonylmethane (MSM) in Knee Osteoarthritis Pain: A Pilot Clinical Trial," suggested that the popular dietary supplement, which contains sulfur, could help reduce the number of knee replacements carried out each year.
Sulfur is well known to be beneficial for the body's connective tissue, and MSM is a popular supplement.
However, there have been few tests conducted that involve patients. As a result, scientists from the Southwest College of Naturopathic Medicine in Arizona and the Arthritis Health Center in Arizona were interested in evaluating the effect of MSM on men and women with symptomatic osteoarthritis pain of the knee.
A secondary purpose was to determine the effect of MSM on various laboratory measures.
The study showed that MSM 3g twice a day for 12 weeks improved pain and physical function in patients with knee osteoarthritis pain without major adverse events. The clinical effect compared to placebo was, however, modest.
The findings therefore suggest MSM may be considered for short-term use in osteoarthritis pain when other treatments are ineffective.
Osteoarthritis (OA) is characterized by erosion of the body's articular cartilage, which becomes soft, frayed, and thinned. It is estimated that more than 20 million Americans have OA, the most common form of arthritis.
When the condition attacks the knee, the consequences can be significant. Pain can become so intense that for many, a total knee replacement is required. Some 381,000 knee replacements were performed in 2002, and more are expected as the baby boom generation ages.
This latest study was a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial. Fifty men and women, aged 40-76 with documented knee OA and arthritis pain were enrolled. Patients with any other type of arthritis or chronic pain were excluded.
A washout period was required for those taking non-steroidal, anti-inflammatory drugs or alternative therapies for osteoarthritis.
Twenty-five of the test subjects were administered MSM 3g twice a day and 25 were given placebo twice a day for 12 weeks (OptiMSM, Cardinal Nutrition). Purity of MSM (distilled MSM microprill 99.9 percent by high-resolution gas chromatography) and absence of heavy metals and microbial contamination were certified by an independent laboratory.
The authors of the new study, Linda Kim, Leslie Axelrod, Nick Buratovich and Robert Waters all from the Southwest College of Naturopathic Medicine in Arizona and Paul Howard of the Arthritis Health Center in Arizona presented their findings at the recent 20th Annual Meeting of the American Association of Naturopathic Physicians.