Introduction: The biochemical markers of the connective tissue metabolism in blood serum may characterize the disturbances in inflammatory, destructive processes, and also serve the criteria for diagnostic evaluation of the state of cartilage and bone tissue of the joints in knee osteoarthritis to control the effectiveness of conservative treatment. The aim: determination of biochemical markers of connective tissue metabolism in the blood of patients with the 1st and 2nd stages of knee osteoarthritis in order to prove the effectiveness of the complex conservative treatment of patients with the use of low-intensity infrared laser radiation. Materials and methods: During the study we examined 80 patients with the 1st and 2nd stages of knee osteoarthritis according to the Kellgren and Lawrence classification. Some patients were prescribed diclofenac sodium and glucosamine hydrochloride, others were prescribed an additional course of laser therapy. Results: At the end of the treatment the group of patients with knee osteoarthritis who were treated with the use of laser therapy, diclofenac sodium and glucosamine hydrochloride, showed a decrease in the content of the following blood serum components: glycoproteins (by 28.9 %), sialic acids (by 28.8 %), chondroitinsulfates (by 91.3 %) due to chondroitin-6-sulfate, activity of alkaline phosphatase (by 36.1 %) compared with the indicators before treatment. Conclusions: a more significant decrease in the inflammation and destruction of the cartilage tissue of the affected joints was observed during knee osteoarthritis treatment with the use of laser therapy than without it.

Introduction: There are many methods for diagnosis and treatment of knee joints osteoarthritis in modern orthopedics. The infrared radiation is one of the most popular and effective methods though it needs experimental substantiation on rats. The aim: Experimental definition of the effectiveness of the proposed method of conservative treatment of knee joints osteoarthritis using sodium diclofenac, glucosamine hydrochloride and infrared laser radiation, on the basis of biochemical markers of connective tissue metabolism in rats. Materials and methods: Experimental studies were performed on 40 white male rats. A part of rats received infrared laser radiation in addition to diclofenac sodium and glucosamine hydrochloride. Results: Using a complex of infrared laser radiation and glucosamine hydrochloride and diclofenac sodium in conservative treatment of rats with experimentally induced knee joints osteoarthritis rats after 24 days of treatment. Treatment with the above-mentioned scheme resulted in a significant reduction in the content of glycoproteins (28.5%), chondroitin sulfates (26.1%), alkaline phosphatase activity (32.3%), and I and II fractions of glycosaminoglycans, namely chondroitin-6- (28.7%) and chondroitin-4-sulfate (40.3%). Moreover, these indicators of the studied markers approached the level of intact animals. Conclusions: Changes in biochemical markers of connective tissue in rats during experimental knee joints osteoarthritis indicated a higher efficiency of the treatment regimen with the use of low-intensity infrared laser radiation compared with exclusively drug therapy.

No abstract