Serum hyaluronic acid level as a predictor of disease progression in osteoarthritis of the knee

Abstract

Objective. To investigate the prognostic value of serum hyaluronic acid (HA) and keratan sulfate (KS) levels in relation to tibiofemoral osteoarthritis (OA) of the knee.Methods. Clinical and demographic data were collected on 94 patients. Radiographs were obtained at study entry and at 5-year followup. Disease progression was defined as 2 mm of joint space narrowing of any tibiofemoral compartment, and/or knee joint surgery during the study period. Serum HA and KS were measured and levels were correlated with entry data and disease progression.Results. At entry, HA levels were significantly related to disease duration (P = 0.036), minimum joint space (P = 0.049), and previous surgery (P = 0.001).After these variables were taken into account, patients whose disease had progressed were shown to have had significantly higher levels of HA at baseline compared with those whose disease had not progressed (P = 0.019). However, there were no significant differences in levels of serum KS between those with and those without disease progression, at entry (P = 0.779) or at subsequent visits.Conclusion. These results suggest that serum HA levels predict disease outcome in OA of the knee and confirm that a single measurement of the serum level of KS is not useful as a prognostic marker in OA.Osteoarthritis (OA) is the most common cause of pain and disability in the elderly (1). Between 2% Supported by the Arthritis and Rheumatism Council.

Prognostic factors of progression of osteoarthritis of the knee: A systematic review of observational studies

“…Progression was defined as radiologic progression in almost all studies. Only 4 studies (11,19,23,24,45) (15%) also reported on a clinical outcome (total knee replacement).…”

Serum biologic markers as predictors of disease progression in osteoarthritis of the knee

“…Indeed, the key enzyme in cartilage destruction has not been clearly elucidated, and families of enzymes, including matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) (1,2), serine proteases (3), and a novel "aggrecanase" (4), have been suggested to contribute to cartilage destruction. In the studies that have focused on human articular cartilage, it has been observed that MMP-3 may be by far the major MMP in cartilage destruction.…”

“…To the Editor: Sharif and colleagues have reported findings, from a study of 94 patients with knee osteoarthritis (OA), suggesting that serum hyaluronate levels could predict outcome in OA of the knee and that a single measurement of the keratan sulfate (KS) epitope 5-D-4 might not be useful as a prognostic marker of OA (1). Moreover, the prognostic value of serum cartilage oligomeric matrix protein (COMP) has been investigated in a set of 57 patients with knee OA ( 2 ) .…”

“…The definition of disease progression in OA is not yet well established, and should take into account not only the technique used for measurement, e.g., radiography or arthroscopy, but also the method of scoring and time when progression is evaluated. The definition of disease progression chosen for this study differs from that one used in previously reported studies evaluating biologic markers as potential predictive factors of disease progression (1,2). In the present study, disease progression was defined by changes in arthroscopic findings (instead of radiologic findings) after a 1-year follow-up (instead of 5 years).…”

Absence of posttraumatic arthritis following intraarticular fracture in the MRL/MpJ mouse

“…These 2 markers have been used in human studies and are shown to be indicative of various aspects of OA. HA is a glycosaminoglycan found in synovium and cartilage that predicts disease outcome in knee (39) and hip OA (40) and correlates with OA progression (39)(40)(41)(42)(43)(44)(45). To date, there are few data regarding serum or synovial fluid biomarker levels following articular fracture and the subsequent development of arthritis.…”