NSAIDs Dont Relieve Knee Pain
Reported November 24, 2004
(Ivanhoe Newswire)–Popping over-the-counter non-steroidal anti-inflammatory pills, such as aspirin, Motrin or prescription drugs like Celebrex, wont do much to relieve knee pain associated with osteoarthritis, report investigators who analyzed the results of 23 studies comparing the drugs to placebos.
While the medications did appear to have a very small benefit in the short-term, long-term results showed no difference in pain relief between people who took the active medications and those who received the placebo treatments.
The meta-analysis was conducted in Norway and involved nearly 10,900 patients. About 7,800 received NSAIDs, and around 3,000 received placebos. The average age of people in the studies was 62 and most had been experiencing symptoms for about eight years.
Since long-term use of NSAID drugs has been linked to serious side effects in the elderly, including gastrointestinal bleeding, high blood pressure, congestive heart failure, and kidney failure, the investigators conclude the drugs should not be used for long-term pain relief.
They write, NSAIDs can reduce short-term pain in osteoarthritis of the knee slightly better than placebo, but the current analysis does not support long-term use of NSAIDs for this condition. As serious adverse effects are associated with oral NSAIDs, only limited use can be recommended.
SOURCE: British Medical Journal, published online, Nov. 22, 2004