Chondroitin sulfate and glucosamine combination in patients with knee and hip osteoarthritis: A long-term observational study in Russia.

Background: Oral treatment of glucosamine (GA) combined with chondroitin sulfate (CS) was reportedly effective for pain relief and function improvement in osteoarthritis patients with moderate to severe knee pain in clinical trials. While the effectiveness of GA and CS on both clinical and radiological findings has been demonstrated, only a few high-quality trials exist. Therefore, controversy regarding their effectiveness in real-world clinical practice remains.

IgA Antiphospholipid Antibodies in Antiphospholipid Syndrome and Systemic Lupus Erythematosus.

Objective: To define the role of IgA antibodies to cardiolipin (aCL) and IgA antibodies to beta-2 glycoprotein 1 (anti-β2-GP1) in the development of vascular complications in patients with antiphospholipid syndrome (APS) and systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). Material and methods: A total of 187 patients with one of the following diagnoses: primary APS (PAPS), probable APS, SLE with APS, and SLE without APS. The comparison group consisted of 49 patients with other rheumatic diseases (RD), the control group included 100 relatively healthy individuals (without RD, oncological pathology, and infectious diseases).

Magnetic therapy in acute and subacute non-specific back pain: Results of an open multicenter study.

Magnetic therapy (MT) is a non-drug method that improves the effectiveness of treatment of musculoskeletal pain, including:acute non-specific back pain (NBP). Objective of our study was to evaluate the results of complex treatment of patients with acute/subacute NBP at home using MT. The study group consisted of 339 patients with severe acute/subacute NBP.

Pharmacological Management of Osteoarthritis With a Focus on Symptomatic Slow-Acting Drugs: Recommendations From Leading Russian Experts.

Background: This article describes an updated stepwise algorithm for the pharmacological management of osteoarthritis (OA) to establish a treatment method for patients with OA.

Summary: In step 1, background maintenance therapy includes symptomatic slow-acting drugs for OA, especially prescription crystalline glucosamine sulfate product, for which the high-quality evidence base of efficacy is unequivocal, or prescription chondroitin sulfate. Oral nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) or paracetamol only as rescue analgesia is given on top of the background therapy.

Pharmacokinetic linearity of naproxen and efficacy of naproxen sodium at various doses .

Objective: Naproxen sodium (NAPSO) is commonly used in a variety of pain conditions. There are several strengths of NAPSO available over the counter (OTC). Most published data are based on single or multiple doses using 220 mg, hence there is a need to assess the analgesic efficacy of other strengths of NAPSO used in the OTC setting.

A phase III study of BCD-055 compared with innovator infliximab in patients with active rheumatoid arthritis: 54-week results from the LIRA study.

BCD-055 is a biosimilar of innovator infliximab (IFX). Here we present the 54-week results from phase 3 clinical study in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). The aim of this study was to demonstrate the equivalent efficacy and safety of BCD-055 and IFX in patients with active rheumatoid arthritis.