Treatment of tendinitis and bursitis: a comparison of nimesulide and naproxen sodium in a double-blind parallel trial.

The clinical efficacy and the tolerability of nimesulide (100 mg bid) and naproxen sodium (550 mg bid) in the treatment of tendinitis and bursitis were evaluated in a multicentre double-blind study over a 14-day period. Two hundred and five patients were included in the study. Patients randomised to one of two parallel treatment groups. They were clinically examined at days 1, 7 and 14. Blood analysis was performed at day 1 and at the end of the treatment. The main efficacy criterion was the diminution of pain during active mobilisation measured using a visual analogue scale. The improvement of the scores was obvious and similar between the two groups. The secondary efficacy criteria (pain during motion against resistance, functional impairment and global assessment of efficacy) confirmed these favourable results and did not evidence any statistical difference between the two groups. The side effects observed were mainly gastrointestinal. Their frequency and intensity were slightly higher in the naproxen sodium group but without any statistically significant difference (28 complaints in 16 patients in the nimesulide group and 33 complaints in 22 patients in the naproxen group). There was no statistical difference between the two treated groups regarding the general clinical examination and the biological follow-up.