A blockbuster weight-loss drug sharply reduces ache from obesity-related knee arthritis and improves an individual’s capability to have interaction in actions equivalent to strolling. That’s in keeping with a medical trial performed in 11 nations — the primary of its form to show that one in all the new wave of anti-obesity drugs can deal with arthritis. The drug, semaglutide, offered ache aid on a par with opioid medication.
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On the finish of the trial, many contributors’ ache had subsided sufficient that they have been now not eligible for the research, says Henning Bliddal, a rheumatologist at Copenhagen College Hospital at Bispebejerg and Frederiksberg who helped to conduct the trial. “They bought a remedy that was so efficient that they roughly have been handled out of the research,” he says.
The outcomes are “essential and could possibly be useful” for individuals with knee osteoarthritis, says Leigh Callahan, an epidemiologist on the College of North Carolina, Chapel Hill.
The findings have been printed right this moment within the New England Journal of Drugs1. The trial was sponsored and designed by Novo Nordisk, which relies in Bagsværd, Denmark, and makes semaglutide, a drug sold as Ozempic for treating diabetes and Wegovy for treating obesity. Bliddal served briefly as a paid guide to the corporate throughout trial planning.
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Osteoarthritis, which causes stiff, painful joints, is among the many commonest circumstances of ageing, and the knee is essentially the most ceaselessly affected joint. Individuals who have weight problems are at increased threat of creating arthritic knees as a result of they’ve further stress on their joints. Weight problems additionally worsens signs, Callahan says. Ache from the situation can hold individuals from exercising, Bliddal says, making it extraordinarily tough for them to reduce weight by way of life modifications alone.
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The trial enrolled some 400 contributors on 5 continents and randomly assigned them to obtain weekly injections of both semaglutide or a placebo. Additionally they acquired counselling on wholesome consuming and bodily exercise. When the trial started, contributors had weight problems, and their common rating on a 100-point ache scale was 71 — excessive sufficient that strolling was painful.
After 68 weeks of injections, contributors taking semaglutide had misplaced rather more weight than these taking the placebo. Additionally they reported a a lot larger drop on the ache scale: a median of 42 factors, versus a median of 28 factors for placebo recipients. These contributors seen a higher enchancment in on a regular basis functioning, equivalent to climbing stairs, too.
The advance in all probability stems partly from a decreased load on the knee stemming from weight reduction, the authors write. However semaglutide also has anti-inflammatory effects, which could assist to elucidate the ache aid.
Regardless of the advantages, Bliddal is worried in regards to the long-term outlook for many who use semaglutide to alleviate knee arthritis. “Do these guys go on with semaglutide endlessly” to handle their ache? People who stop taking the drugs generally regain the lost weight, and the drugs are costly — a month’s provide can value lots of of US {dollars}.
Callahan emphasizes that though the outcomes appear “very thrilling”, it’s essential for individuals to complement anti-obesity medication with way of life modifications for long-term weight upkeep.