Evaluation of nabumetone in the treatment of active adult rheumatoid arthritis

Abstract

The safety and efficacy of nabumetone and placebo were compared in a three-week, multicenter, double-blind, randomized, parallel evaluation involving patients with class II or III definite or classical rheumatoid arthritis. No patient received concomitant treatment with other nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory agents; however, disease-modifying agents (gold, steroids) were permitted. Of the 139 patients who entered the double-blind phase of the study, all were evaluable for safety, and 113 were evaluable for efficacy. Sixty-one patients received 1,000 mg of nabumetone per day at bedtime, and 50 were given placebo tablets; patients in both groups were permitted up to 3,250 mg of acetaminophen per day as needed for pain. After three weeks, nabumetone-treated patients exhibited a greater degree of improvement from baseline than did the placebo-treated patients, and the degree of improvement was statistically significant for four of seven variables.