The potential impact of intra-articular medications on the health of cartilage in joints has been debated for decades. Adding fuel to the fire is the recent finding that two common joint medications not only support cartilage cells, they also might help to protect cartilage from being damaged by some other substances sometimes used within the joint.

The researchers found that both triamcinolone and hyaluronic acid supported cartilage cells and protected cartilage from the toxic effects of lipopolysaccharide (LPS; an endotoxin, which is a pro-inflammatory agent), amikacin, and/or the local anaesthetic mepivicaine.

"Each of these drugs is commonly administered intra-articularly in horses, yet the effect of triamcinolone in combination with other medications has not been studied," reported Alicia L. Bertone, DVM, PhD, Dipl. ACVS, Endowed Chair of Equine Clinical Medicine and Surgery at The Ohio State University’s Comparative Orthopedic Research Laboratory.

In this study, researchers examined cartilage cultures from explanted samples. They treated the cultures with various combinations of LPS, triamcinolone, hyaluronic acid, amikacin, and mepivicaine