Acta Orthop Traumatol Turc
The chondroprotective effect of intra-articular hyaluronic acid at early stages of osteoarthritis: An experimental study in rabbits
Abstract
Objectives: Hyaluronic acid (HA) is used in osteoarthritis, especially for the control of pain. In this study, we investigated the effect of intra-articular HA on experimental osteoarthritis of early stage.
Methods: Osteoarthritis was induced in both knees of 10 rabbits by transecting the anterior cruciate ligament under intramuscular anesthesia with ketamine and xylazine. Intra-articular HA at a dose of 0.6 ml (15 mg/ml) and physiologic saline solution (0.6 ml) were injected into the right and left knees, respectively, three times with a week interval. Three rabbits died during the study period and were excluded. The remaining rabbits were sacrificed in the 12th week via high dose anesthesia to remove the the distal femora for histological evaluation using the Mankin scale and for measurements of the cartilage area.
Results: The mean cartilage areas calculated in HA- and saline-injected knees differed significantly (1.097 mm2 and 0.477 mm2, respectively; p
Methods: Osteoarthritis was induced in both knees of 10 rabbits by transecting the anterior cruciate ligament under intramuscular anesthesia with ketamine and xylazine. Intra-articular HA at a dose of 0.6 ml (15 mg/ml) and physiologic saline solution (0.6 ml) were injected into the right and left knees, respectively, three times with a week interval. Three rabbits died during the study period and were excluded. The remaining rabbits were sacrificed in the 12th week via high dose anesthesia to remove the the distal femora for histological evaluation using the Mankin scale and for measurements of the cartilage area.
Results: The mean cartilage areas calculated in HA- and saline-injected knees differed significantly (1.097 mm2 and 0.477 mm2, respectively; p
References
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