[Proglumetacin: possible first choice in the treatment of orthopedic- traumatologic disorders]

Ninety-seven patients (44 males and 53 females of mean age 42.6 +/- 12,9 years) with orthopedic-traumatologic disorders (osteoarthritis, 38; painful joints, 26; fibrositis, painful shoulder, 20; peri- and extra-articular disorders, 13) had been treated during 7 to 30 days with two suppositories (400 mg) or three capsules (450 mg) proglumetacin (Proxil Rorer). Most patients responded well to very well to the treatment with significant improvement of pain and inflammatory symptoms as well as restoring of limited function. Such a response resulted proportional to the dose (53% of good responders among those given the lower dose and 82% among those at the higher dose) and to the kind of pathology. The patients with acute disorders (7) responded all very well in 7 days; those with subacute disorders (57) responded well to very well in a proportion of 57% within 15 days; those with chronic disorders responded to a proportion of 48% within 30 days. Tolerance resulted very good anyway: in no case had the treatment to be withdrawn, nor allergic or C.S.N. reactions were observed, so that the overall tolerance was defined excellent to good in 90% of patients. Thirty-three patients complained of accessory symptoms, mainly epigastric pain and nausea, almost always mild and anyway transient. Proglumetacin can therefore be properly defined as a firstchoice treatment for the management, also ambulatory, of orthopedic-traumatologic disorders.