The german biotech-company Orthogen AG, offers an alternative presenting the results of a new osteoarthritis trial with Orthokine.
After the failure of cox II inhibitors such as Vioxx, osteoarthritis patients and their doctors are faced with a lack of alternative therapies. The Orthokine-therapy means knee-injections of IL-1Ra protein, obtained from the patient's blood. "The Orthokine-therapy is safe and effective. Orthokine produced clinical results that were far superior to those achieved using standard hyaluronic acid injection therapy and placebo," said Orthogen CEO Prof. MD. Peter Wehling on Wednesday in Dusseldorf/North-Rhine-Westfalia. The trial, including 400 Patients, was realized according to international standards from Heinrich-Heine-University (Dusseldorf). Further Orthogen is developing in cooperation with Harvard University a stem cell technology for regeneration of human cartilage tissue.
Ten to 20 percent of the population of western countries suffers from joint and spinal disorders. The therapies for these disorders are most expensive after circulatory and digestive diseases with a high market potential. According to official government statistics, orthopedic disorders cost EUR25 billion annually in Germany alone and approximately one-third of this amount is accounted by osteoarthritis. For many years now, musculoskeletal disorders have been the number one cause of work disability and the consequent economic loss in Germany.