Creaking joints may get some longer lasting lubricant from work done by biomedical engineering Professor Mark W. Grinstaff and his colleagues at Boston University. They have developed a new synthetic polymer that works like synovial fluid, the natural lubricant in joints.
New Slippery Polymer for Joint Injections?
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“From our studies, we know our biopolymer is a superior lubricant in the joint, much better than the leading synovial fluid supplement, and similar to healthy synovial fluid, ” said Grinstaff. “When we used this new polymer, the friction between the two cartilage surfaces was lower, resulting in less wear and surface-to-surface interaction. It’s like oil for the joints.” Grinstaff explained that the best fluid supplement now available offers temporary symptom relief but provides inadequate lubrication to prevent further degradation of the cartilage surfaces that cushion the joint.
“You put it between your fingers, and it’s slippery, ” Grinstaff observed. “Once we made it, we wondered if we could use it as a lubricant and where it would be useful. That’s how we thought of using it as a potential treatment for osteoarthritis.” He said that a characteristic of the biopolymer is its large molecular weight or size, which prevents it from seeping out of the joint, enabling longer lasting cartilage protection. Unlike the leading synovial fluid supplement, which lasts one or two days, he added, the new polymer remains in the joint for more than two weeks.
The most common form of joint disease and a leading cause of disability in the elderly is osteoarthritis. It presently affects about 27 million Americans and 200 million people worldwide. The ailment is characterized by pain and swelling of the hands, hips, knees and other joints where degradation of cartilage and synovial fluid results in bone-on-bone abrasion. While there’s no cure, one treatment—injection of a polymer to supplement synovial fluid in the joint—promises to relieve symptoms and slow the disease’s progression by reducing wear on cartilage surfaces.
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This is a fascinating development. In my practice we've seen similar outcomes with the revised protocol. The key differentiator seems to be patient selection criteria. Has anyone else noticed the correlation with BMI thresholds?
Great point. I'd push back slightly on the conclusion, the sample size in the cited study is too small to draw population-level inferences. That said, the directional signal is compelling and worth a larger RCT.
We implemented a similar approach last year. Early results are promising but we're still gathering 12-month follow-up data. Happy to share our protocol if anyone is interested.
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