Comparison of efficacy and tolerability of acemetacin and acetaminophen in the treatment of knee osteoarthritis

Acemetacin is a relatively new nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug. The objective of this study was to compare the efficacy and tolerability of acemetacin and acetaminophen in the treatment of knee osteoarthritis (OA). 35 female patients with primary knee osteoarthritis were included in the study. The mean age of the patients was 52.41 (34-68) years and the mean duration of the complaints was 50,56 (2-240) months. Patients were randomly assigned to receive either acemetacin or acetaminophen for 12 weeks: 20 patients received 90 mg/day acemetacin and 15 patients received 2000 mg/day acetaminophen. All of the patients were assessed before and after 12 weeks with Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) and Lequesne Osteoarthritis Severity Index (LOSI). Moreover they were evaluated with 99mTc MDP bone scan for the degree of inflammation. Both groups were questioned for the side effects at the end of the study. At the end of 12 weeks pain due to OA (measured with VAS) (p<0.01) and LOSI scores (p<0.05) improved significantly in the acemetacin group. There was no such improvement in the acetaminophen group. Groups did not differ in the frequency of side effects. In conclusion acemetacin appears to be effective and safe in controlling pain and functional loss due to knee OA.