Caroline - Thanks for bringing this to our attention.
As someone with progressing OA who's unable to take the usual pain relievers (ie: NSAIDS, Ibuprofen, Codeine etc) due to their interaction with medications I'm on for Addison's Disease, I'm having to look for other possible treatments.
As I've learned through experience and particularly from others here on NT it pays to do thorough research before trying anything. I've read the two studies you cited here about UC-II and one other:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2764342/
From the studies UC-II does look as though it may have some therapeutic effect for both RA
and OA and may be worth further investigation - (sorry kiwi - the traditional determination that OA doesn't include an inflammatory process is being revised:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3638313/ ).
It is interesting to note that all three studies were funded or partly funded by either InterHealth Nutraceuticals Inc or the InterHealth Research Centre - the manufacturer of UC-II. Not that there is anything wrong with this - the involvement has been disclosed - just that, to date, I haven't found an independent study - yet.
I'll discuss this information with my Rheumatologist next time I see him - meanwhile caroline or kiwi or anyone else, if you come across any independent studies a link posted here would be appreciated.