Glucosamine in OA - an Internet based RCT

"The investigators' goal was to demonstrate the feasibility of performing a clinical trial purely over the Internet, rather than assess the efficacy of glucosamine alone. However, their findings were consistent with another recent study by Cibere and colleagues,[1] who evaluated patients with knee osteoarthritis who had experienced at least moderate subjective improvement with previous glucosamine use in whom the medication was discontinued. In their trial, no evidence of symptomatic benefit from continued use of glucosamine sulfate was demonstrated, and no differences were found in severity of disease flare or other secondary outcomes between placebo and glucosamine patients.[1] (This is in contrast to several industry-sponsored glucosamine trials that have demonstrated positive results.) Furthermore, physicians should be aware that supplements are costly and not covered by insurance; further studies are needed to resolve the question of efficacy."