title: Double-blind multicenter studies with meclofenamate sodium in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis in the United States and Canada.
abstract: The therapeutic efficacy of N-(2,6-dichloro-m-tolyl)anthranilic acid, sodium salt (meclofenamate sodium, Meclomen) in the management of rheumatoid arthritis was clearly established in four large, double-blind, controlled multicenter studies in 757 patients. In one study, 200 mg/day of meclofenamate sodium was compared with 300 mg/day and placebo for six weeks. Another compared meclofenamate sodium, 300 mg/day, with acetylsalicylic acid (ASA), 3.6 g/day, for eight weeks. Two other long-term studies compared meclofenamate sodium and ASA, 300 mg/day and 3.6 g/day, respectively, for six months; in one, the patients were allowed to receive concomitant gold salts or steroids, while in the other, they were not. Both objective and subjective measures showed that meclofenamate sodium was as effective as ASA and superior to placebo. Gastrointestinal reactions, most commonly diarrhea, were seen more often with meclofenamate sodium than with ASA or placebo, but withdrawal for adverse reactions did not differ significantly between treatment groups. ASA-associated side effects such as tinnitus and deafness were not experienced by the patients receiving meclofenamate sodium. Meclofenamate sodium is a safe, effective agent for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis.
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001172:Arthritis, Rheumatoid / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000503:physiopathology; D002170:Canada; D002986:Clinical Trials as Topic; D004311:Double-Blind Method; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008469:Meclofenamic Acid / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D008875:Middle Aged; D014481:United States; D062367:ortho-Aminobenzoates / Q000627:therapeutic use*
chemical_list: D062367:ortho-Aminobenzoates; D008469:Meclofenamic Acid