Paracetamol as effective against arthritis as newer drugs: Australian study

0 Comments | AFP, January, 2005

SYDNEY (AFP) — The inexpensive analgesic paracetamol eases the chronic pain of osteoarthritis as effectively and more safely than newer and more expensive anti-inflammatories, according to an Australian study.

The three-year study by the University of Queensland of 188 patients showed that two-thirds of the patients found paracetamol was better than Ibuprofen, aspirin or the newer non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs such as Celebrex.

Michael Yelland, a senior lecturer at the university's Centre for General Practice, said around 90 percent of the patients who suffered from osteoarthritis were unaware which medication they were receiving in the study.

The findings of the study, published Monday in the American Journal of Therapeutics, followed US research...