Statins: A potential role in the management of osteoarthritis?

The Protective Role of Simvastatin on Methotrexate-Induced Bone Injury in Adult Albino Rat

“…Statins are best known as competitive inhibitors of hydroxyl-methyl-glutaryl-CoA (HMG-CoA) reductase that reduce cholesterol synthesis, therefore they are widely used for the treatment of hypercholesterolemia [19] . Pacheco-Pantoja and Alvarez-Nemegyei assumed that the use of statins in the treatment of metabolic bone diseases in humans has not yet reached the status of solid scientific dogma, even though it had been about fifteen years since the first experimental evidence in an animal model of the osteomodulador effect of statins was reported by Mundy et al [20,21] .…”

The effects of statins on osteoarthritis structural progression: another glimpse of the Holy Grail?

“…However, for some years it has been recognised that these agents also have significant anti-inflammatory and immune-modulating effects 7–9. So, it is possible that these agents may benefit the OA joint through a number of non-mutually exclusive mechanisms on different targets.…”

“…A multitude of anti-inflammatory effects of statins have been reported at the cellular level including inhibition of leucocyte–endothelial adhesion, reduced levels of inducible nitric oxide synthase, inhibition of production and reduced chemoattraction of monocyte chemotactic protein-1, and reduced interleukin-6 (IL 6), IL-8 and IL-1β production 7–9. Many of these effects are a result of inhibition of inflammation upregulated nuclear factor kappa B 7.…”

“…Animal research in this field has largely used anti-inflammatory models, with some models of acute inflammation demonstrating beneficial effects when treated with statins 7–9. There is little work in OA models.…”

Γονιδιακή Έκφραση Στον Αρθρικό Χόνδρο Ασθενών Με Οστεοαρθρίτιδα

“…Δεδομένης της γήρανσης του πληθυσμού καθώς και της αυξημένης επίπτωσης παχυσαρκίας, που αποτελεί μείζονα παράγοντα κινδύνου για τη νόσο, εκτιμάται ότι σύμφωνα με τα Ηνωμένα Έθνη το 25% του πληθυσμού στη Δύση ηλικίας άνω των 65 ετών θα πάσχει από ΟΑ το 2010 και ότι η επίπτωση της νόσου θα διπλασιαστεί μέχρι το 2020 [2,3]. Παρά την αυξημένη συχνότητα της νόσου, η κατανόηση της ακριβούς αιτιολογίας, της παθογένειας και της εξέλιξης της ΟΑ παραμένει ελλιπής, κυρίως λόγω των παραγόντων συνοσηρότητας στις επιδημιολογικές μελέτες, όπως επίσης και λόγω της φτωχής συσχέτισης ανάμεσα στα συμπτώματα της ΟΑ και στην ακτινολογική εικόνα, καθώς και εξαιτίας της αδυναμίας ανίχνευσης πρώιμης νόσου.…”