Therapeutic options in the selection of nonsteroidal, antiinflammatory drugs in the treatment of osteoarthritis: a review.

The size of the consumer market has resulted in an increasing number of antiinflammatory drugs available on prescription for osteoarthritis. Despite the development of newer chemical compounds, similarities in pharmacologic properties, efficacy in clinical trials, and toxicity profiles do not support a claim that any one drug is consistently better than another. Differences in pharmacokinetic profiles and formulations do allow for considerable flexibility in clinical therapeutics. Variabilities in drug action, effects on other organ systems, and drug interactions, particularly in the elderly, must always be considered when prescribing an individual medication. However, variability in patient response to individual drugs (both clinical benefit and toxicity) and the size of the clinical problem largely justify the number of nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drugs available.