Background and Objective　Osteoarthritis（OA）is a representative cause of knee pain in the elderly. The estimated number of Japanese patients with knee OA is approximately 25 million. Glucosamine and chondroitin are used as a supplement to reduce the symptoms of knee pain, based on the clinical trials with knee OA patients. Thus, there is essentially no study reporting on the action of glucosamine and chondroitin-containing supplement on healthy individuals. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of glucosamine and chondroitin sulfate on gait of healthy volunteer.
Methods　We conducted a randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind, clinical trial using 60 healthy participants with weak gait ability aged 40 to 68. They were administered with a glucosamine and chondroitin-containing supplement （glucosamine hydrochloride 1200 mg/day and chondroitin sulfate 60 mg/day）or a placebo for 12 weeks. The primary outcome was measured using the scores of locomo level test as well as JKOM（Japanese Knee Osteoarthritis Measure）.
Results　In a gait ability indicator called two-step test, the score was significantly improved at 8 weeks after the intervention in the test supplement group compared with the placebo group. Furthermore, when the subjects with JKOM score≧30 were analyzed, the score of two-step test was further improved in the test supplement group. These observations suggest that a test supplement improves a gait ability of the subjects with weak gait ability.
Conclusion　Glucosamine and chondroitin-containing supplement improves the gait ability
of healthy individuals with weak gait ability.