Nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drugs and articular cartilage.

Salicylates and some other nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drugs (NSAID) suppress proteoglycan biosynthesis in normal articular cartilage in vitro. Their effect on osteoarthritic cartilage in vitro is even greater than their effect on normal cartilage. Aspirin has a similar effect in vivo on both atrophic cartilage and osteoarthritic cartilage in the dog, although no in vivo effect of salicylate on normal joint cartilage has been observed. While the magnitude of the effects of NSAID on proteoglycan metabolism in cartilage appeared to be inversely related to the proteoglycan content of the matrix, it is possible that some drugs are selectively bound to cartilage matrix components, which could affect their action on the chondrocyte. If NSAID have similar effects in patients with arthritis, this could have implications with respect to articular cartilage lesions.