OXAPROZIN VERSUS DICLOFENAC RETARD IN THE TREATMENT OF ACTIVATED OSTEOARTHROSIS

Aim: The present study should elucidate the efficacy, patient acceptab ility, and side effect profiles of Oxaprozin and Diclofenac retard whe n given to patients with active primary osteoarthrosis. Methods: 80 ou tpatients with active primary osteoarthrosis with a radiological grade of II or III in the hip or knee joint (mean duration 4 years) were di stributed randomly and equally to each treatment group. Patients age r anged from 40-66 years (mean age 51 years). After a washout period, th ey received one of the preparations for 6 weeks. Efficiency assessment s consisted of pain, disturbance of sleep, individual and general func tional impairment scales, laboratory determinations, and patients glob al evaluation. For statistical analyses Mann-Whitney-U-, Wilcoxon-, an d chi(2)-tests were applied. Results: 74 Patients completed the study successfully, whereas 3 patients of each group withdrew due to adverse events. Significant differences favoring Oxaprozin were found for the individual and functional impairment scale and the patients' global e valuation of treatment at: the final visit (6 weeks). Improvement comp ared to baseline Visit was significant for both treatment groups. Conc lusions: The results suggest that Oxaprozin is more effective than Dic lofenac retard, a recognized standard therapy, when given for 6 weeks to patients with active osteoarthrosis.