[Study on effect of Xianzhong Injection on morphology of knee and insulin-like growth factor-1 in rabbits with early stage osteoarthritis].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effect of Xianzhong Injection (XI) on morphology of knee and insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) in rabbits with early stage osteoarthritis (OA). METHODS: One hundred and twenty rabbits were randomly divided into 5 groups, the blank group, the model group treated with 0.5 mL normal saline once a week, the positive control group treated with 0.5 mL hyaluronate once a week, and the XI 1 group and XI 2 group with 0.5 mL XI once and twice a week, respectively, all the medicines were medicated via intra-articular injection. Knee joint function was examined 8 weeks after modeling, IGF-1 content in serum and synovia was detected, and the histologic examination of articular cartilage was observed by Mallory staining as well. RESULTS: The improvement of knee joint function was better in the XI 1 and 2 groups than that in the model group (P < 0.01), and that in the XI 1 group was equivalent to that in the positive control group (P > 0.05). Histologic examination showed there was no calcification in all the layers of cartilage in the positive control group and the XI 1 group with complete cartilaginous bluish-green collagen preserved. The content of IGF-1 increased in synovia and serum in the positive control group and the two XI groups as compared with that in the model group (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: XI can improve knee joint function to certain extent in early OA, and repair the degenerative cartilage.