Current drug treatment for osteoarthritis

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Aim

To evaluate the efficacy of pregabalin with aceclofenac in the treatment of chronic pain in patients with knee OA.

Material and methods

Sixty female patients with knee OA associated with neuropathic pain were enrolled in the open-label randomized trial. We used DN4 and PainDETECT questionnaires to evaluate the signs and symptoms of neuropathy. Patients were randomly distributed into two groups and were treated with aceclofenac 100 mg b.i.d. in combination with pregabalin (75 mg b.i.d. over 14 days and 150 mg b.i.d. over the next 28 days) or as monotherapy. Duration of treatment was 42 days. We used WOMAC, visual analogue scale (VAS), HADS and EQ-5D questionnaires to evaluate the efficacy of treatment.

Results

Compared with monotherapy with NSAID, combination treatment with aceclofenac and pregabalin resulted in more significant reduction in intensity of pain (VAS), improvement of functional disorders (WOMAC) and neuropathic descriptors.

Conclusion

All patients with knee OA should be screened for the signs of neuropathy, that requires treatment with NSAID in combination with pregabalin

Key words

Knee osteoarthritis, central sensitization, NSAIDs, pregablin.