Efficacy and safety of Meriva, a curcumin-phosphatidylcholine complex, during extended administration in osteoarthritis patients

Belcaro G, Cesarone MR, Dugall M, Pellegrini L, Ledda A, Grossi MG, Togni S, Appendino G · Alternative Medicine Review

WOMAC score, Karnofsky index and treadmill walking distance improved more than control over 8 months, alongside falls in IL-1beta, IL-6, sCD40L, sVCAM-1 and ESR. It remains the longest curcumin osteoarthritis follow-up published.

Population

Osteoarthritis patients followed for 8 months, Italy

Intervention

Meriva curcumin-phosphatidylcholine phytosome complex alongside best available treatment

Comparator

Best available treatment alone (non-randomised control group)

Limitations

Open, non-randomised product-evaluation design with a best-available-treatment control; authors include Indena affiliates (Meriva's manufacturer); no blinding, so the eight-month duration is its only real advantage over the RCTs.