Scanned directly, the cartilage looked no better after 24 weeks
X-rays measure the gap between the bones and infer the cartilage. The only trial to scan it, in 201 knees after 24 weeks on 1,500 mg a day, found no less damage.
What the study found
The one trial to use MRI saw no slowing of cartilage damage
X-rays measure the gap between the bones and infer the cartilage. This is the only glucosamine trial to look at the cartilage directly, using magnetic resonance imaging: after 24 weeks on 1,500 mg a day, scans of 201 knees showed no less cartilage damage.
The caveat · 3 in 10 without confirmed arthritis
Three in ten had knee pain without X-ray-confirmed osteoarthritis, so this is not purely a trial in established disease. Twenty-four weeks is short for a structural endpoint when the trials reporting benefit ran three years. It used a hydrochloride drink, which sulfate proponents reject.