A new study examined the
effects of vitamin D supplements on knee pain from osteoarthritis. Researchers
found the supplements did not relieve or slow the progression of the pain.
The study was published
in the Journal of the American Medical
Association on March 8, 2016.
One in 10 men and about
13 percent of women over 60 suffer from osteoarthritis.
There is no treatment
available for osteoarthritis that will stop the loss of cartilage that occurs
as a result of this progressive disease. Many osteoarthritis patients head
toward surgery and knee replacements, according to researchers.
The data in the study
suggest there is little evidence to support vitamin D supplements as effective
in slowing the progression of the disease or structural change in the knee.
Using vitamin D
supplements to treat osteoarthritis has been considered controversial in the
past; past studies have reported conflicting results.
This latest study
randomly assigned osteoarthritis patients to receive either vitamin D
supplements or a placebo. In this particular study, vitamin D supplements did
not provide any benefits.
The best treatment,
according to some experts, is to provide a joint supplement that will modify
the symptoms of this progressive disease. Some experts believe no oral or
injected medication will alter the disease.
Existing treatments
include cortisone injections, painkillers, and anti-inflammatory drugs. While
these can relieve the symptoms of osteoarthritis, none stop the disease's
progression.
The research team that
conducted the study assigned 400 study participants to either a placebo or to
50,000 International Units of vitamin D per month. They conducted follow-ups
for two years, during which time the researchers did not observe differences
between the two groups in regard to loss of cartilage, reduced pain, or
improvement in bone marrow in the shin or thigh.
This study does not mean
vitamin is not important for other aspects of bone health; it is in fact
important to building and maintaining bone mass.
It simply doesn't appear
from this and past studies, though, that vitamin D has the capacity to improve
or stop the effects of osteoarthritis.