Mh. Atkinson et al., ASSESSMENT OF SALSALATE, A NONACETYLATED SALICYLATE, IN THE TREATMENTOF PATIENTS WITH ARTHRITIS, Clinical therapeutics, 17(5), 1995, pp. 827-837
This study evaluated physicians' use of the occurrence of tinnitus as
a tool to establish the optimal dosage of salsalate, a nonacetylated s
alicylate, in patients with arthritis treated in routine clinical prac
tice. The use of printed educational materials to improve compliance w
as also studied prospectively. A total of 782 patients were enrolled i
n this 3-week study by 95 general practitioners in an office setting.
Of the 771 assessable patients, 90.0% had osteoarthritis, 9.7% had rhe
umatoid arthritis, and 0.3% had both types of arthritis. Most patients
experienced improvement of symptoms after 3 weeks of treatment. There
were no differences in the rates of improvement at the first and thir
d weeks of treatment between patients with osteoarthritis and patients
with rheumatoid arthritis. In addition, duration of arthritis had no
effect on rates of improvement. Rates of patient satisfaction tended t
o increase over the study period. Rates of patient satisfaction did no
t differ significantly at the first and third weeks between patients w
ho did receive printed educational materials and those who did not. Tr
eatment was discontinued in 234 patients (30.4%) because of side effec
ts. The most frequent reasons for discontinuation were gastrointestina
l symptoms (n = 102; 13.2%) and tinnitus (n = 52; 6.7%). The clinical
effectiveness and safety of salsalate were confirmed in patients with
arthritis in routine clinical practice settings.