Efficacy and Long-term Safety of Dexibuprofen [S(+)-Ibuprofen]: A Short-term Efficacy Study in Patients with Osteoarthritis of the Hip and a 1-Year Tolerability Study in Patients with Rheumatic Disorders

The efficacy study was performed to prove the equivalent efficacy of dexibuprofen compared to the double dose of racemic ibuprofen and to show a clinical dose-response relationship of dexibuprofen. The 1-year tolerability study was carried out to investigate the tolerability of dexibuprofen. In the efficacy study 178 inpatients with osteoarthritis of the hip were assigned to 600 or 1200 mg of dexibuprofen or 2400 mg of racemic ibuprofen daily. The primary end-point was the improvement of the WOMAC OA index. A 1-year open tolerability study included 223 outpatients pooled from six studies. The main parameter was the incidence of clinical adverse events. In the efficacy study the evaluation of the improvement of the WOMAC OA index showed equivalence of dexibuprofen 400 mg t.i.d. compared to racemic ibuprofen 800 mg t.i.d., with dexibuprofen being borderline superior (P = 0.055). The comparison between the 400 mg t.i.d. and 200 mg t.i.d. doses confirmed a significant superior efficacy of dexibuprofen 400 mg (P = 0.023). In the tolerability study the overall incidence of clinical adverse events was 15.2% (GI tract 11.7%, CNS 1.3%, skin 1.3%, others 0.9%). The active enantiomer dexibuprofen proved to be an effective NSAID with a significant dose-response relationship. Compared to the double dose of racemic ibuprofen, dexibuprofen was at least equally efficient, with borderline superiority over dexibuprofen (P = 0.055). The tolerability study in 223 patients on dexibuprofen showed an incidence of clinical adverse events of 15.2% after 12 months. The results of the studies suggest that dexibuprofen is an effective NSAID with good tolerability.