Clinical and population research is an important part of health care improvement and development. Quality and coordination as well as integration in medical practice are among priorities in modern research agenda. The article discusses modern approaches to design, quality and ethical issues in health care research.

Aim. To study the effect of glycolysis activators deferrioxamine (DFO), CoCl2, V(SO4)2 and mimosine on
collagen cleavage activity by collagenase in osteoarthritic (OA) articular cartilage explants.
Materials and methods. 32 OA articular cartilages obtained after arthroplasty were examined in the study. Cartilages were cultured in the presence of 10-50μM DFO, CoCl2, V(SO4)2 or mimosine. Collagen cleavage activity was measured by ELISA. Inhibition of protein or DNA synthesis in the presence of [3H]-labeled proline or thymidine, respectively, was used for evaluation of examined agent toxicity.
Results. Glycolysis activators DFO, CoCl2, V(SO4)2 or mimosine were capable of inhibiting type II collagen cleavage activity in OA articular cartilage explants. The examined agents have shown no toxic effect in the concentrations used.
Conclusion. Glycolysis activation in articular chondrocytes may offer a means of inhibiting articular cartilage destruction in OA patients.

Compared to European countries, the incidence of hip fractures in Russia is significantly lower. The reasons for such a discrepancy have been studied insufficiently. It is known that in Russia, not all patients with hip fracture are hospitalized. The aim of the present study was to obtain the best possible precise data on epidemiology of osteoporotic fractures in older population. 208 cases of hip fractures were revealed during 2008-2009 (52 men and 156 women). 57 (27,4%) of them haven't been registered in official statistics and were consulted only by the primary care physicians. The incidence of hip fracture make up 191,9/100000 person-years (125,4 men and 233,2 women). The official statistics doesn't give the objective information on number of hip fractures, and search for patients treated only in a primary care settings is necessary in order to receive objective information.

Association of bone mineral density (BMD) of axial skeleton with age of the disease onset as well as with clinical traits and instrumental investigation findings has been studied in osteoarthritic patients. 116 females with primary knee OA, 74 ofwhich exhibited normal or increased
BMD at lumbar spine and 42, with osteoporosis were included in the study. Knee joint pain was measured using visual analog scale (VAS). All the patients were subjected to X-ray analysis of their knee joints at two sites (OA stage was
determined according to Kellgren-Lawrence scale), densitometry at lumbar spine and proximal femur using QDR-4500W (Hologic), MRT, and ultrasonography of the knee joints.
We determined that the increasedBMD at lumbar spine was associated with early OA onset, more pronounced X-ray changes in the knee joints and higher frequency of varus deformation development in tibial bones.

Osteoporosis and obesity, two disorders of body composition, are growing in prevalence. Interestingly, these diseases share several features including a genetic predisposition and a common progenitor cell. With aging, the composition of bone marrow shifts to favor the presence of adipocytes, osteoclast activity increases, and osteoblast function declines, resulting in osteoporosis. Secondary causes of osteoporosis, including diabetes mellitus, glucocorticoids, immobility and metabolic syndrome are associated with bone-marrow adiposity. Unraveling the interface between bone and fat at a molecular and cellular level is likely to lead to a better understanding of several diseases, and to the development of drugs for both osteoporosis and obesity.

The paper provides a detailed description of the two cases of one of the rarest diseases - Gorham-Stout syndrome. This syndrome is accompanied by the massive osteolysis of various sites of a bone tissue. The literary review is done. The isolated osteolysis of the separate bone parts is a non-malignant process, and it goes without abnormalities of its functions. The combination of osteolysis with chylothorax is an unfavorable process. The treatment of this disease is possible only by calcitonin or bisphosphonates.