ABSTRACT
Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and osteoarthritis (OA) are the most common arthritic diseases. Medical ozone has demonstrated its effectiveness in combination therapy with methotrexate or non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs for RA and OA, respectively. Although RA and OA have been compared from different points of view, few studies have considered their redox status in spite of the oxidative processes that are involved in both diseases. The aim of this study was to compare RA with OA, evaluating their redox status and the effects of ozone on their clinical response to combined therapy with ozone. The redox status of 80 patients was determined: antioxidant defenses, injury markers, two subjective variables (pain and disability), and levels of antibodies against cyclic citrullinated peptides were evaluated. Oxidative stress and clinical response to combined therapy with ozone was higher than in the case of RA. After medical ozone treatment, there was an increase in antioxidant defense and a decrease in injury markers as well as pain, disability, and autoantibody concentrations. Redox biomarkers were able to differentiate between both arthritic diseases and combined therapy with ozone (methotrexate + ozone), showing a therapeutic selectivity for RA in comparison with OA.
ABSTRACT
Medical ozone reestablishes cellular redox balance so that it may be a valid therapeutic approach in the prevention and management of age-related diseases with oxidative etiology in older people. The aim of this study is to evaluate oxidative stress and some vasoactive substances in elderly (60-70 years) rheumatoid arthritis patients with diabetes and hypertension, as well as another group with bronchial asthma patients in order to demonstrate the beneficial effects of medical ozone in the prevention and therapy of age-related diseases in these age groups. A randomized clinical study with 45 older patients (60-70 years) was performed. Group I (n = 15) with rheumatoid arthritis + diabetes and hypertension received no ozone treatment, and group II (n = 30) was treated with medical ozone. This group was divided into two subgroups (n = 15 each), group IIa: the same as group I + medical ozone and group IIb: bronchial asthma patients. Indicators of RA in I and IIa groups were evaluated. Redox balance was assessed through defense and injury biomarkers. Thromboxane A2 (TXA2) and prostacyclin levels were assessed in group IIb patients. Medical ozone arrested oxidative injury progression in the Ia group and decreased thromboxane levels and the TXA2/6-keto PGF1α ratio in the IIb group. Medical ozone arrested the progression of oxidative damage and modulated those endogenous mechanisms that promote a suitable redox status and TXA2/PGI2 balance. These results suggest that medical ozone may become a standard approach in the prevention and management of age-related oxidative diseases in elderly people.
ABSTRACT
Medical ozone reduced inflammation, IL-1ß, TNF-α mRNA levels and oxidative stress in PG/PS-induced arthritis in rats. The aim of this study was to investigate the medical ozone effects in patients with rheumatoid arthritis treated with methotrexate and methotrexate+ozone, and to compare between them. A randomized clinical study with 60 patients was performed, who were divided into two groups: one (n=30) treated with methotrexate (MTX), folic acid and Ibuprophen (MTX group) and the second group (n=30) received the same as the MTX group+medical ozone by rectal insufflation of the gas (MTX+ozone group). The clinical response of the patients was evaluated by comparing Disease Activity Score 28 (DAS28), Health Assessment Questionnaire Disability Index (HAQ-DI), Anti-Cyclic Citrullinated (Anti-CCP) levels, reactants of acute phase and biochemical markers of oxidative stress before and after 20 days of treatment. MTX+ozone reduced the activity of the disease while MTX merely showed a tendency to decrease the variables. Reactants of acute phase displayed a similar picture. MTX+ozone reduced Anti-CCP levels as well as increased antioxidant system, and decreased oxidative damage whereas MTX did not change. Glutathione correlated with all clinical variables just after MTX+ozone. MTX+ozone increased the MTX clinical response in patients with rheumatoid arthritis. No side effects were observed. These results suggest that ozone can increase the efficacy of MTX probably because both share common therapeutic targets. Medical ozone treatment is capable of being a complementary therapy in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis.