Bioiberica Release: Chondroitin Sulfate CS b-Bioactive Proves Symptomatic Efficacy And Delays Knee Osteoarthritis Progression

BARCELONA--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Chondroitin sulfate CS b-Bioactive® (made by Bioiberica) delays osteoarthritis progression and is as effective as the anti-inflamatory drug celecoxib for improving the disease’s symptoms. These are the main conclusions of a new published clinical essay presented by Professor Jean Pierre Pelletier at the recent celebrated Annual European Congress of Rheumatology; being held in Madrid, Spain.

The MOSAIC clinical essay (24 MOnth study on Structural changes in knee osteoarthritis Assessed by mrI with Chondroitin sulfate) is a multicenter, randomized, double blind, controlled and comparative study, conducted by Bioiberica, carried out in five medical centers in Quebec (Canada). 194 patients suffering from knee osteoarthritis with inflammation (synovitis) and moderate pain were recruited to assess the effects of chondroitin sulfate (1.200 mg/ day) and celecoxib (200 mg/ day) over the loss of cartilage volume in knee osteoarthritis after 24 months as the primary objective.

The participants underwent three Quantitative Magnetic Resonance scans: one at the beginning of the study, a second one after one year and a third one at the end of the study. The results revealed that the progression of knee osteoarthritis is slower in patients receiving chondroitin sulfate CS b-Bioactive®. More precisely, this group experienced a statistically significant lower loss of cartilage volume as soon as after the first year of treatment, in comparison with those patients who received the anti inflammatory drug.

Patients treated with chondroitin sulfate had a decrease in synovitis which was associated with a statistical significant decrease in cartilage loss. In addition to that, a published post hoc analysis of this clinical trial concludes that chondroitin sulfate has also a protective effect at reducing the long-term progression of knee OA structural changes by a decrease in the loss of subchondral bone curvature.

“This data proves that chondroitin sulfate may delay the advance of osteoarthritis in the long term, and identifies a possible new mode of action of chondroitin sulfate”, affirmed Professor Pelletier.

The MOSAIC study also evaluated the effects of both products on the disease’s symptoms. Among others, the study evaluated their effects on pain, function, stiffness, joint swelling and effusion; concluding that both treatments were equally efficient across the entire study, reaching a clinically relevant symptom improvement of around 50%.