OBJECTIVES : Osteoarthritis (OA) is a chronic disease with no specific treatment that improves patient’s quality of life. This disease not only affects the cartilage, but the entire joint structure and produces joint inflammation. An alternative OA treatment consists of supplementation with omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA N-3) as they are precursors of specialized pro-resolving lipid mediators (SPMs) and have been reported as molecules that can decrease inflammation and pain. That is why a systematic review was carried out in order to demonstrate the efficacy of tissue regeneration in patients with OA by means of supplementation with PUFA N-3.

METHODS : A systematic review was carried out in online databases such as PubMed, Cochrane Library, LILACS, Mediagraphic and Nieto editores, where studies related to the influence of PUFA N-3 in the treatment of OA were reviewed, using the Cochrane method. The selection of the studies was carried out independently, by two not blinded reviewers, full text publications of randomized clinical trials (RCTs), observational studies and systematic reviews in English or Spanish until November 28, 2019 were taken into account, the data from each study was extracted and the quality of these studies was assessed using the Cochrane Bias Risk Tool for randomized clinical trials (RCTs).

RESULTS : A total of 374 references were retrieved, of which 25 were duplicates, leaving 349 studies for screening. Of these, no studies that met the inclusion criteria were located. However, some studies evaluating supplementation in mouse and murine models were reviewed, these studies show tissue recovery compared to placebo groups.

CONCLUSIONS : It was not possible to obtain enough information to validate the benefits of the administration of PUFA N-3 in humans, but pre-clinical studies in animal models were found that may point to a beneficial effect in humans, though trials are needed