Traditionally, treatment forosteoarthritishas been limited to relieving pain. Scientists have found hope that drugs used to treat osteoporosis may be useful in treating not only osteoarthritis (OA) pain, but cartilage damage as well.

Osteoporosisis a condition in which bone tissue breaks down faster than it is replaced, causing the bones to become brittle and prone to fracture. Bisphosphonates, a class of drugs commonly prescribed for osteoporosis, work by inhibiting cells called osteoclasts that break down bone. Researchers believe they may work similarly for OA, by inhibiting the activity of osteoclasts in the bone beneath the cartilage in affected joints.

In animal studies, bisphophonates have shown to reduce OA progression – as measured by the severity of cartilage damage and bony overgrowth – by as much as 30–40%.Continue readingPotential New Treatment for Osteoarthritis→