Salicylsalicylic acid revisited: a multicentre study

Twenty-eight medical specialists (internists, rheumatologists) selected 102 primarily arthritic patients for a two-week efficacy and safety field study of salicylsalicylic acid. Data were gathered on pain, morning stiffness, range of motion, serum salicylate concentration, erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) and gastro-intestinal bleeding before and after a 15-day drug trial. Results showed a 67% favourable clinical response in the physician's global evaluation and a 60% improvement in pain; the drug itself was well tolerated by 96% of patients. Response correlations with morning stiffness and range of motion were equivocal. Of fifty-four patients examined before and after treatment for intestinal bleeding, only two (3.7%) had detectable faecal blood loss. Good clinical response had a statistically significant association with serum drug concentrations of 13.6 to 13.8 mg%; unsatisfactory response was noted in those patients with mean serum salicylate levels of 8.6 mg%. ESR decreased or was unchanged in thirty-five patients with satisfactory clinical response and in fourteen patients with unsatisfactory response.