Possibilities of Metabolic and Functional Disorders Correction in Osteoarthritis With Complex Comorbidity

Abstract

The aim: To assess the impact of complex metabolic therapy of primary osteoarthritis and type 2 diabetes mellitus under conditions of comorbidity on the course and progression of these pathologies. Patients with comorbidities of primary osteoarthritis and diabetes mellitus are a special group of patients because the importance of these comorbidities is the additional difficulty in diagnosing and conducting adequate therapy, given the close etiopathogenetic links of these conditions, which leads to poor quality of life, increased costs of diagnosis and treatment, increasing the frequency and duration of hospital stay. Materials and methods: We examined 67 patients with primary osteoarthritis in comorbidity with diabetes mellitus. Patients were comparable by clinical, gender criteria, the severity of primary osteoarthritis, and treatment received and were divided into two groups: 1st group (n=32) - patients received treatment for OA and diabetes mellitus in accordance with international recommendations; 2nd group (n=35) - patients received treatment as in group 1 + drug alpha-lipoic acid. Determination of the level of the studied parameters was performed before and after treatment. Results: The analysis of the obtained results revealed statistically significant positive dynamics after treatment for symptoms of primary osteoarthritis in both study groups of patients (p<0.05), but the therapeutic effect in the 2nd group was more significant (p<0.05). There was a statistically significant positive dynamics on the scale of VAS at rest and movement (p<0,05), WOMAC index for pain, stiffness, and functional insufficiency (p<0,05), and Leken index in the 2nd group after treatment compared with the 1st (p<0.05). Conclusions: The obtained results indicate a statistically significant positive effect of alpha-lipoic acid on the course and progression of primary osteoarthritis under conditions of comorbidity with diabetes mellitus.