Insights into the Action Mechanisms of Traditional Chinese Medicine in Osteoarthritis

Osteoarthritis (OA) is a chronic degenerative joint disease characterized by articular cartilage destruction, synovial inflammation, and osteophyte formation. No effective treatments are available. The current pharmacological medications such as nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) and anal...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Linfu Li, Haiqing Liu, Weimei Shi, Hai Liu, Jianqiong Yang, Daohua Xu, Hao Huang, Longhuo Wu
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Hindawi Limited 2017-01-01
Series:Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine
Online Access:http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2017/5190986
Description
Summary:Osteoarthritis (OA) is a chronic degenerative joint disease characterized by articular cartilage destruction, synovial inflammation, and osteophyte formation. No effective treatments are available. The current pharmacological medications such as nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) and analgesics, accompanied by possible adverse effects, might ameliorate OA symptoms. But they do not arrest the progression of OA. Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) provides medical value by modification of disease and symptoms in OA. Valuable work on exploring TCM merits for OA patients has been investigated using modern technologies, although the complicated interacting network among the numerous components indicates the uncertainty of target specification. This review will provide an overview of the action mechanism of TCM in the last 5 years, discussing the TCM activities of anti-inflammation, antiapoptosis, antioxidation, anticatabolism, and proliferation in OA. TCM is a proposed medical option for OA treatment.
ISSN:1741-427X
1741-4288