Comparative study of salsalate and aspirin in osteoarthrosis of the hip or knee

A short-term, double-blind controlled crossover study was carried out in 20 patients with osteoarthrosis of the hip or knee to compare the effectiveness and tolerance of salsalate and aspirin. After a 1-week placebo washout period, patients received either 3 g salsalate per day or 3.6 g soluble aspirin per day for 2 weeks before being crossed over to the alternative treatment. Paracetamol was used as a rescue analgesic. The results of clinical assessments of pain, stiffness and sleep disturbance, using visual analogue scales, showed that salsalate produced a comparable clinical improvement to that with aspirin, and similar serum salicylate levels. Salsalate, however, was significantly superior to aspirin with regard to side-effects and faecal occult blood loss.