Decreased Levels of Synovial Fluid Biomarkers Correlate with the Severity and Function of Patients with Osteoarthritis Following Electroacupuncture
Bibliographic record
Abstract
Abstract Objective To investigate the expression of inflammatory factors IL-6, IL-8, MMP-1, and MMP-3 in the synovial fluid (SF) of patients with osteoarthritis (OA) during electroacupuncture treatment, and further analyze the correlation between inflammatory factors and the function of patients and the severity of osteoarthritis. Methods 137 patients with knee osteoarthritis (KOA) were collected. 128 patients were eventually enrolled in the study after propensity matching analysis, including 64 patients in the electroacupuncture group and 64 patients in the control group. K-L grading was performed according to X-rays. The patients in the control group were treated with conventional physical rehabilitation therapy. The patients in the electroacupuncture group were treated with 6 weeks of electroacupuncture and conventional physical rehabilitation therapy. The visual analog score (VAS), Western Ontario and McMaster University Osteoarthritis Index (WOMAC), and Lysholm knee score were compared at three time points: before treatment, 6 weeks after treatment, and 6 months after treatment. The levels of SF inflammatory factors IL-6, IL-8, MMP-1, and MMP-3 were analyzed in both groups at three time points to investigate the correlation between inflammatory factors and functional scores and K-L classification. Results The VAS, WOMAC, and Lysholm scores of patients in both groups improved significantly after treatment (P < 0.05). The electroacupuncture group showed a significant reduction in VAS compared to the control group at 6 weeks and 6 months after treatment (P < 0.05). WOMAC scores were significantly lower in the electroacupuncture group compared to the control group at 6 months post-treatment (P < 0.05). Lysholm scores were significantly higher in the electroacupuncture group compared to the control group at 6 weeks and 6 months post-treatment (P < 0.05). The levels of all inflammatory factors decreased significantly in both groups after treatment. The levels of IL-6, IL-8, and MMP-3 were significantly lower in the electroacupuncture group compared with the control group at 6 weeks and 6 months after treatment (P < 0.05). The level of IL-6 was positively correlated with VAS scores (r = 0.45, p < 0.001) and WOMAC (r = 0.3, p < 0.001), and negatively correlated with Lysholm score (r=-0.27, p < 0.001) and K-L classification (r=- 0.54, p < 0.001).The level of IL-8 was positively correlated with VAS (r = 0.32, p < 0.001) and negatively correlated with Lysholm score (r=-0.19, p < 0.0027). The level of MMP-3 was positively correlated with WOMAC score (r = 0.48, p < 0.001). The level of MMP-1 was negatively correlated with K-L classification (r =-0.29, p < 0.001). Conclusion IL-6 in SF was associated with pain, impaired function, and the severity of OA. MMP-3 is associated with the severity of OA. IL-6 and MMP-3 are expected to be used as a biomarker for diagnosis, treatment, and determining the prognosis and severity of OA. Electroacupuncture can effectively relieve pain and enhance articular function in patients with KOA. It is a safe and effective method for treating KOA. SF inflammatory factor levels in patients with KOA decreased significantly after electroacupuncture treatment. Electroacupuncture treatment may work by anti-inflammatory effect.
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How this classification was reachedexpand
Full frame machine prediction
Teacher imitationNot calibrated prevalence, not ground truth. Human validation pending. The Gemma side is a direct model label for every work in the frame, read from the title-only record. The Codex side is a classifier learned from the 10,348 direct Codex labels and calibrated to design-weighted sample rates; fields without enough sample support carry no Codex call. Candidate is the union of the two sides; consensus is their intersection. These outputs are machine_predicted_unvalidated and are not human labels.
Distilled classifier scores by category (both heads)
| Category | Codex | Gemma |
|---|---|---|
| Metaresearch | 0.000 | 0.001 |
| Meta-epidemiology (narrow) | 0.000 | 0.000 |
| Meta-epidemiology (broad) | 0.001 | 0.000 |
| Bibliometrics | 0.000 | 0.000 |
| Science and technology studies | 0.000 | 0.000 |
| Scholarly communication | 0.000 | 0.000 |
| Open science | 0.000 | 0.000 |
| Research integrity | 0.000 | 0.000 |
| Insufficient payload (model declined to judge) | 0.001 | 0.000 |
Machine scores (provisional)
The two teacher heads of the student model, read on this work. A score orders the frame for review; it never asserts a category, and the validation status ships verbatim with every row.
Baseline scores from an immature model (maturity gate not passed, 7 training rounds). Scores rank; they never assert a category.
score_only:v0-immature-baseline · verbatim from the scoring run: score_only means the number may rank works, and no category label ships from itClassification
machine, unvalidatedMachine predicted; a candidate call from one source (direct Gemma or distilled Codex), not a consensus.
How this classification was reached, model by model and score by score, is at the end of the page under "How this classification was reached".