Proportion of patients attaining meaningful pain relief for each intervention compared with control: Ordered by descending efficacy (based on risk ratio).
| TREATMENT TYPE | RCTS | INTERVENTION EVENT RATE, % (N/N) | CONTROL EVENT RATE, % (N/N) | NNT | TIME FRAME | CERTAINTY OF THE EVIDENCE (GRADE)* | RISK RATIO (95% CI) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Exercise | 11 | 47 (341/723) | 21 (138/644) | 4 | 6 to 104 wk |
0000 Low | 2.36 (1.79–3.12) |
| Intra-articular corticosteroids | 7 | 50 (203/410) | 31 (91/296) | 6 | 4 to 24 wk |
0000 Very low | 1.74 (1.15–2.62) |
| SNRIs (duloxetine only) | 6 | 64 (655/1030) | 43 (443/1030) | 5 | 10 to 18 wk |
0000 Moderate | 1.53 (1.25–1.87) |
| NSAIDs (oral) | 43 | 57 (12 201/21 495) | 39 (2838/7204) | 6 | 4 to 104 wk |
0000 Moderate | 1.44 (1.36–1.52) |
| Glucosamine | 9 | 47 (384/824) | 37 (306/819) | 11 | 4 to 156 wk |
0000 Very low | 1.33 (1.02–1.74) |
| NSAIDs (topical) | 22 | 61 (2357/3892) | 47 (1602/3373) | 8 | 1 to 12 wk |
0000 Low | 1.27 (1.16–1.38) |
| Chondroitin | 9 | 57 (707/1250) | 45 (553/1227) | 9 | 12 to 48 wk |
0000 Moderate | 1.26 (1.13–1.41) |
| Viscosupplementation | 31 | 53 (1748/3291) | 44 (1300/2963) | 11 | 2 to 160 wk |
0000 Very low | 1.22 (1.12–1.33) |
| Opioids (oral) | 15 | 47 (1795/3854) | 43 (1048/2412) | 32 | 10 d to 24 wk |
0000 Very low | 1.16 (1.02–1.32) |
| Acetaminophen | 2 | 47 (240/513) | 43 (204/478) | NSS | 6 to 24 wk |
0000 Low | 1.17 (0.83–1.64) |
GRADE—Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation; NNT—number needed to treat; NSAID—nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug; NSS—not statistically significant; RCT—randomized controlled trial; SNRI—serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor.
↵* Details of GRADE Assessment are available in the appendix from CFPlus (Table A8).