52 year old George Laflare has been a sports fanatic since his high school days. A former football player, George says over the years his knees have really taken a beating. Eventually he developed knee osteoarthritis. Now, new topical treatments of knee osteoarthritis are helping George cope with the pain.

“I got hit on it quite a few times in football and lacrosse and twisted and I had both of them operated on two or three times,” says George.
George’s knee osteoarthritis set in years ago. It occurs as a result of the surface cartilage of the knee deteriorating. He’s tried to fight the pain without any standard medication for knee osteoarthritis, because of potential side effects.
“I was always leery of stomach problems, I didn’t want any ulcers,” says George.
In addition to gastrointestinal upset, bleeding can also be a side effect of the anti-inflammatory drugs that are given for the treatment of knee osteoarthritis.
“Most of the anti-inflammatory agents will also affect the way the platelets work and the platelets are the most important cells in the process of clotting when the bleeding occurs,” explains Dr. Sicy Lee of the Hospital for Joint Diseases.
But for patients like George, topical medication may be a great alternative as a treatment for osteoarthritis. According to the Archives of Internal Medicine, symptoms of primary osteoarthritis of the knee, including both pain and stiffness, were significantly improved in patients who used a topical non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug.
“Oral agents would have more side effects than the local topical use of the same agents,” says Dr. Lee.
During the 12 week study patients applied the topical medication, diclofenac sodium, directly on their knees, four times a day. Researchers found that patients who applied the diclofenac solution experienced nearly a 46% reduction in their ratings of knee pain.
“As a treatment for knee osteoarthritis topical medication can provide very quick relief,” says Dr. Lee.
George plans on consulting with his doctor about the possibility of a topical therapy. He has plenty of incentive since both he and his wife are eager to get back to leading a more active life.
“My wife would like to go hiking and biking. I still play a little golf, but not as much as I could, so I’m really looking for an effective treatment for my knee osteoarthritis.”
The cream has been approved in Canada, the UK and a number of European countries. It is currently under review by the FDA. According to the study, most adverse effects related to using the diclofenac were skin reactions at the site of application. 41% of people who used the cream as treatment for osteoarthritis, experienced minor skin irritation.

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