Osteoarthritis and sarcopenia: treatment perspectives

BACKGROUND. Osteoarthritis (OA) is a major medical and social problem in modern society, as it is the leading cause of impaired mobility, loss of independence, and disability. Sarcopenia, which often coexists with OA, minimizes the effectiveness of non-pharmacological treatment programs for osteoarthritis. There is considerable clinical interest in the efficacy of symptomatic slow-acting drugs (disease-modifying agents), focused on the clinical manifestations of sarcopenia. OBJECTIVE. To evaluate changes in muscle strength and function during therapy with a bioactive concentrate derived from small marine fish in patients with chronic nonspecific musculoskeletal pain and probable sarcopenia. MATERIALS AND METHODS. A single-center, open-label, prospective, phase IV comparative post-marketing study was designed to assess changes in muscle strength and function during treatment with a bioactive concentrate derived from small marine fish in 60 geriatric patients with probable sarcopenia and chronic nonspecific musculoskeletal pain. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION. During therapy, an increase in muscle strength was observed in both the intervention and control groups. Handgrip strength increased by 44.3 % over 2 months in the intervention group (from 14.7 kg to 21.2 kg), compared with a 5.9 % increase in the control group. Over the observation period, «Timed Up and Go» decreased by 40.6 % in the intervention, with most patients reaching the reference value compared to a 22.9 % reduction in the control. Gait speed increased by 6.5 % in the first month versus 2.4 % in the second month in the intervention. Pain reduction reached 83.1 % in the group after 2 months, compared to 22.8 % in the control (p = 0.02). CONCLUSION. The inclusion of a bioactive concentrate from small marine fish in the comprehensive management of pain exacerbations in patients with chronic nonspecific musculoskeletal pain and probable sarcopenia resulted in a greater reduction in pain compared to the control group. Under pain control conditions, indicators of muscle strength were significantly improved in the group receiving the bioactive concentrate compared to those in the control group.