Effects of shock wave therapy on glycosaminoglycan expression during bone healing

• Glycosaminoglycans in osteogenesis after shock waves.
• ESWT stimulates chondroitin sulfate and hyaluronic acid.
• Glycosaminoglycans in matrix bone.

BackgroundSeveral cases of delayed bone consolidation have been treated with extracorporeal shock wave therapy (ESWT) to improve bone healing and a key role of the extracellular matrix glycosaminoglycans in osteogenesis has been suggested.ObjectiveIn this study, we aimed to identify and quantify the amount of sulfated glycosaminoglycans (GAG) and hyaluronic acid (HA) within rat femurs following bone drilling and treatment with shock waves.MethodsTo identify and quantify the sulfated glycosaminoglycans (GAG) and hyaluronic acid (HA) within rat femurs following bone drilling and ESWT, 50 male Wistar rats were evaluated. The animals were divided into two groups, both of which were subjected to bone drilling. One of the groups was treated with ESWT. The rats were sacrificed on the 3rd, 7th, 14th, 21st, and 28th day. GAG presence was analyzed by agarose gel electrophoresis with subsequent densitometry and ELISA.Results and discussionThe content of sulfated GAGs increased significantly from the 3rd to the 28th day (p = 0.002). Chondroitin sulfate was expressed more highly than the other GAGs. HA content increased significantly at the 3rd day in animals treated with ESWT compared to the control group (p = 0.003).ConclusionESWT stimulates of sulfated glycosaminoglycans during bone healing and enhanced early expression of HA compared to the control group.