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EMBARGOED UNTIL
MONDAY, APRIL 19, 2004
Contact: Donna Krupa
703.967.2751 (cell)
703.527.7357 (office)
djkrupa1@aol.com
APS Newsroom: April 17-21, 2004
Washington, DC Convention Center
East Registration Area/Flex Unit
Telephone: 202.249.4009
Adding
Menthol To Topical Creams For Osteoarthritis Provides Significant Pain Relief
A new study demonstrates
improved mobility, less pain, in patients with osteoarthritis of the knee,
elbow and wrist
WASHINGTON, DC -- Osteoarthritis (OA) is a
progressive, degenerative joint disease estimated to affect more than 21
million individuals in the United States. The Arthritis Foundation reports
that arthritis is the leading disability of Americans resulting in over 39
million medical visits per year and $65 billion in medical expenses and lost
wages. This condition is characterized by erosion of articular cartilage,
caused by enzymatic and mechanical breakdown of the extracellular matrix.
The most common symptoms are pain, stiffness, reduced joint range of motion,
and limitations to normal activities of daily living such as getting up from
a chair, walking, balance and strength, and ascending/descending stairs, as
well as limitations to local muscular endurance and hand grip strength in
patients with OA of the upper extremities.
Pain reducing medications such as acetaminophen,
non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), and COX-2 inhibitors have
been common treatments for osteoarthritis in the growing elderly population.
However, these medications often have painful side effects or do not react
well with other medications. Accordingly, there is a need for alternative
treatments for the osteoarthritis patient.
One proven alternative treatment is the use of oral
and/or a topical blend of cetylated fatty acids. Cetylated monounsaturated
fatty acids have been shown to provide protection against arthritis in rats;
a recent study demonstrated that a topical cream consisting of a blend of
cetylated fatty acids significantly reduced pain and improved physical
function in patients with knee osteoarthritis. In that study, the first
treatment of the topical cream caused acute improvements in stair climbing
ability, timed “up and go” performance, knee range of motion, and a
reduction in pain within 30 minutes. Additional improvements were observed
after 30 days of treatment. However, this research was for the topical
cream in its developmental stage and was only used with patients with knee
osteoarthritis.
A New Study
Recently, menthol has been added to this topical
cream. Menthol has been shown to possess analgesic properties thereby
reducing the sensation of pain. A new study extends previous research and
examines the effects of a topical cream consisting of cetylated fatty acids,
along with the addition of menthol, on pain and functional performance in
patients with knee osteoarthritis over the course of one week.
Additionally, several patients with elbow and wrist osteoarthritis were
included to examine potential effects on upper-extremity performance and
pain in these individuals.
The authors of “Treatment With A Cetylated Fatty Acid
Topical Cream With Menthol Reduces Pain and Improves Functional Performance
In Patients With Osteoarthritis,” are Nicholas A. Ratamess, William J.
Kraemer, Jeffrey A. Anderson, David P. Tiberio, Michael E. Joyce, Barry N.
Messinger, Jeff S. Volek, Duncan N. French, Matthew J. Sharman, Ana L. Gómez,
Barry A. Spiering, Jason D. Vescovi, Ricardo Silvestre, Carl M. Maresh, and
Robert L. Hesslink Jr. The participating institutions were the Human
Performance Laboratory, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT; Department of
Health and Exercise Science, The College of New Jersey, Ewing, NJ; and
Imagenetix, Inc., San Diego, CA. The researchers will present their findings
at the American Physiological Society’s (APS) (www.the-aps.org)
annual scientific conference, Experimental Biology 2003, being held
April 17-21, 2004, at the Washington, D.C. Convention Center.
Methodology
Twenty-eight patients (10 with knee OA, 10 with wrist
OA, 8 with elbow OA) were assigned to an experimental group based upon the
location of his/her diagnosed osteoarthritis (i.e., knee, elbow, or wrist).
Each patient applied the cream to the affected area twice per day every day
for one week and subsequently returned to the lab for post-study functional
performance testing. Subjects were tested for pain, stiffness, knee range
of motion (ROM), balance, and ability to rise from a chair, walk, and
ascend/descend stairs for patients with knee osteoarthritis; patients with
elbow and wrist osteoarthritis were tested for measures of grip strength,
elbow ROM, muscular strength, local muscular endurance, and pain.
The significant improvements observed in the research
team’s previous investigation with use of a topical cream consisting of a
blend of cetylated fatty acids, coupled and the high test-retest reliability
(R = 0.95 to 0.99), precluded the need for a control group for this
study.
Results
Fifteen test results were obtained for patients with
osteoarthritis of the knee, twelve for patients having OA in the elbow, and
eight measurements were taken with patients diagnosed with wrist
osteoarthritis. Across the board, the test measurements (available upon
request) revealed that use of a cetylated fatty acid topical cream with the
addition of menthol produced significant improvements in physical
performance and reduced pain in patients with OA of the knee, wrist, and
elbow.
Conclusions
Topical creams containing cetylated fatty acid are now
being sold to consumers for the knee osteoarthritis. This study
demonstrates that the addition of menthol adds a new pain relief component
to the treatment and its effectiveness for osteoarthritis of the knee, elbow
and wrist.
- end -
The
American Physiological Society (APS) was founded in 1887 to foster basic and
applied science, much of it relating to human health. The Bethesda, MD-based
Society has more than 11,000 members and publishes 3,800 articles in its 14
peer-reviewed journals every year.
***
Editor’s
Note: For further information or to schedule an interview with a member of
the research team, please contact Donna Krupa at 703.967.2751 (cell),
703.527.7357 (office) or at
djkrupa1@aol.com. Or contact the APS newsroom at 202.249.4009 between
9:00 AM and 6:00 PM EDT April 17-21, 2004.
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