Abstract
Osteoarthritis (OA) typically generates pain, reduced mobility and reduced quality of life. Most conventional treatments for osteoarthritis, such as non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) and simple analgesics, have side effects. PCSO-524™, a non polar lipid extract from the New Zealand Green Lipped Mussel, is rich in omega-3 fatty acids and has been shown to reduce inflammation in both animal studies and patient trials. This OA trial examined pain relief changes in relation to quality of life and safety of use for OA patients who took PCSO-524™ compared with patients who took fish oil (containing an industry standard EPA-18% and DHA-12% blend). PCSO-524™ patients showed a statistically significant improvement compared with patients who took fish oil. There was an 89% decrease in their pain symptoms and 91% reported an improved quality of life. Patients treated with fish oil showed significantly less improvement and a greater level of physical discomfort during the study. These results suggest that PCSO-524™ might offer a potential alternative complementary therapy with no side effects for OA patients.
Highlights
Since the 1980s, numerous clinical studies have shown that both the oil of Perna canaliculus (PCSO-524TM) and 18/12 fish oil, standardised to contain 18% eicosapentaenoic (EPA) and 12%docosahexaenoic acids (DHA), have anti-inflammatory activity that can contribute to reduced pain and improved joint mobility for patients who suffer osteoarthritis (OA) [1,2,3]
The Pearson’s chi-square test value of all 3 groups was 12.61 (p = 0.002). The aim of this clinical trial was to evaluate the comparative effectiveness of PCSO-524TM relative to fish oil for pain relief, quality of life and safety
Our study demonstrated that EPA and DHA in PCSO-524TM alone are not responsible for the AI effects, which recognizes previous studies regarding PCSO-524TM and EPA [13] in rats and COX inhibition analyses of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) of PCSO-524TM [19]
Summary
Since the 1980s, numerous clinical studies have shown that both the oil of Perna canaliculus (PCSO-524TM) and 18/12 fish oil, standardised to contain 18% eicosapentaenoic (EPA) and 12%docosahexaenoic acids (DHA), have anti-inflammatory activity that can contribute to reduced pain and improved joint mobility for patients who suffer osteoarthritis (OA) [1,2,3]. PCSO-524TM has unique polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) [4,5]; including 5,9,12,15-octodecatetraenoic acid (OTA), 5,9,12,16-nonadecatertraenoic acid, 7,11,14,17-eicosatetraenoic acid (ETA), and 5,9,12,15,18-henei cosapentaenoic acid [4] These molecules (including EPA and DHA) are similar to arachidonic acid (AA) (5,8,11,14-eicosatetraenoic acid), the precursor to the inflammatory agents, prostaglandins and leukotrienes. The interrupted bond positioning of these structural analogues of AA may account for their anti-inflammatory (AI) behaviour, by competitively inhibiting the active site of enzymes that use AA as a substrate [5,6]. This combination of omega-3 fatty acids is not found in any other known marine oils [4]. Fish oil studies typically use large dosages of standardised EPA and DHA fish oil [7,8] compared with similar studies [9,10] that used the oil of P. canaliculus to achieve reductions in inflammatory markers
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