Abstract

Osteoarthritis, the most common rheumatic disease, presents the clinician with a major therapeutic and management task. The chronic and progressive course of the disease is punctuated by pain, declining function and escalating disability. This article attempts to deal with the pharmacological therapeutic options available to use in the management of osteoarthritis. Other non-pharmacological therapeutic modalities are also briefly discussed, including patient education, joint protection, physiotherapy, occupational therapy and surgery. Drug therapy as discussed focuses on the control of pain and inflammation. For this intermittently painful condition analgesic drugs assume a very important role. Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) have combined analgesic and anti-inflammatory properties which are particularly useful in many patients who manifest inflammation in addition to pain. While systemic steroids have no role in the treatment of osteoarthritis, intra-articular steroid injections may be of benefit. In trying to slow the degenerative process chondroprotective agents such as glycosaminoglycan may also assume increasing importance in the future. Choosing one drug over another must be done after consideration of many factors including the therapeutic and toxicity profile of the drugs involved, their pharmacology and dose regimen, the patient profile, cost and the desired effect.