Effect of Turmacin supplementation on joint discomfort and functional outcome among healthy participants – A randomized placebo-controlled trial

• Published in: Complementary therapies in medicine 2020-09, Vol.53, p.102522-102522, Article 102522
• Main Authors: Raj, Jeffrey Pradeep, Venkatachalam, Shreeraam, Racha, Pranathi, Bhaskaran, Sreejith, Amaravati, Rajkumar S.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Angular velocity; Arthritis; Ayurvedic medicine; Cartilage; Clinical trials; Curcuma longa; Discomfort; Herbal medicine; Homeostasis; Isokinetic dynamometry; Joints (anatomy); Knee; Muscle contraction; Muscles; Pain; Physical activity; Quadriceps muscle; Range of movement; Supplements; Tumor necrosis factor-TNF; Turmacin; Turmeric
• ISSN: 0965-2299; 1873-6963
• DOI: 10.1016/j.ctim.2020.102522

•Turmacin® is an extract from the rhizome of Curcuma longa with 12.6% w/w turmerosaccharides and negligible curcuminoids.•Turmacin® was explored for its effect on joint health in this study.•On day 84, Turmacin 1g and 0.5 g groups had 49% decreased hazards of having shorter time to initial pain upon exertion.•The difference in adjusted mean range of movement between Turmacin 0.5 g and placebo groups was 4.79 degrees (p = 0.008).•One participant in Turmacin 1g group and three participants in the placebo group complained of mild heart burn. Curcuma longa has been widely used in Ayurveda for its medicinal properties and Turmacin was developed from C. longa as a standardized extract containing turmerosaccharides. In this clinical trial, the effect of Turmacin on knee joint discomfort in healthy adults subjected to strenuous physical activity was evaluated. Double-blind, triple-arm, parallel-group, randomized placebo-controlled trial. Healthy participants from an urban tertiary care teaching hospital. Healthy participants were randomized in 1:1:1 ratio to receive either Turmacin 0.5 g/1 g or placebo once daily for 84 days. The participants were subjected to 10-minute strenuous exercise. Time to initial pain, final pain score on a visual analogue scale, range of movement (ROM) of knee and the force of contractions of muscles around the knee joint. A total of n = 90 participants were recruited. The mean final pain scores were significantly lower in the Turmacin 1 g and Turmacin 0.5 g when compared with the placebo from day-7 and day-5 onwards respectively. The survival analysis consistently showed a decreased hazard for early onset of pain in both the Turmacin groups. On day-84, the difference in mean ROM between Turmacin 0.5 g and placebo was 4.79 degrees (p = 0.008) and that for Turmacin 1 g and placebo was 2.34 degrees (p = 0.306). The difference in muscle force for isokinetic contractions of the quadriceps at angular velocities of 120 and 180 was significant between Turmacin 0.5 g and placebo (p = 0.002 and p = 0.005 respectively) while that for Turmacin 1 g & Turmacin 0.5 g (p = 0.206 and p = 0.414 respectively) and Turmacin 1 g & Placebo (p = 0.046 and p = 0.037) were not significant. However, in the within group analysis participants in Turmacin 1 g group had better preserved muscle functions than Turmacin 0.5 g group at angular velocities of 120 and 180 when compared with placebo. Turmacin (0.5 g and 1 g) was efficacious when compared to placebo in increa