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Biochemical markers in osteoarthritis: will they measure up?

Nature Clinical Practice Rheumatology volume 2, pages 116–117 (2006)Cite this article

Osteoarthritis (OA) is characterized by degraded cartilage, mild-to-moderate synovial inflammation, and altered bone structure that results in pain, impaired mobility, and disability. Plain radiography is the reference technique for assessing the severity of joint destruction. It provides direct information on bones but not on cartilage, and has limited sensitivity. MRI provides direct information on the different joint tissues and is currently being optimized for use in OA. Conventional laboratory markers, such as serum C-reactive protein, show inflammation in some patients, but provide little information on joint damage.

Biological markers for use in clinical rheumatology must meet several criteria: first, to diagnose the presence of OA, before radiologic evidence of joint damage; second, to identify patients at increased risk of disease progression; and third, to monitor the efficacy of anti-inflammatory and disease-modifying OA drugs. To achieve these goals, biochemical markers need to be highly tissue-specific to allow for easy interpretation of the data and to allow for efficient decision making. Also, the preanalytical factors that can influence the levels of these markers independently of OA have to be adequately controlled.

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  1. the Senior Research Scientist at Molecular Marker Division in Lyon, INSERM and Vice President at Synarc, France

    Patrick Garnero

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  1. Patrick Garnero
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Correspondence to Patrick Garnero.

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The author declares no competing financial interests.

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Garnero, P. Biochemical markers in osteoarthritis: will they measure up?. Nat Rev Rheumatol 2, 116–117 (2006). https://doi.org/10.1038/ncprheum0132

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