ReviewRheumatology and therapy2020
Topical Diclofenac, an Efficacious Treatment for Osteoarthritis: A Narrative Review.
Review in Rheumatology and therapy, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT05816226 (Comparison of Topical 1% Diclofenac and Topical 2.5% Hydrocortisone for TMJ Arthralgia), which is not on this map. Cited by 42 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Comparison of Topical 1% Diclofenac and Topical 2.5% Hydrocortisone for TMJ Arthralgia
Who cites it
42 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 82 citations in OpenAlex.
- Relative safety and efficacy of topical and oral NSAIDs in the treatment of osteoarthritis: A systematic review and meta-analysis.Medicine · 2022Pooled it
- Efficacy of conservative treatments for hand osteoarthritis : An umbrella review of interventional studies.Wiener klinische Wochenschrift · 2021Pooled it
- Comparative efficacy of transdermal buprenorphine versus diclofenac in the management of knee osteoarthritis: a randomized controlled trial with network pharmacology insights.Inflammopharmacology · 2026Trial
- Efficacy and safety of S-flurbiprofen plaster in knee osteoarthritis patients: A 2-week randomized controlled Phase III clinical trial compared to diclofenac gel.International journal of rheumatic diseases · 2022Trial
- Formulation of Topical Dosage Forms Containing Synthetic and Natural Anti-Inflammatory Agents for the Treatment of Rheumatoid Arthritis.Molecules (Basel, Switzerland) · 2020Trial
- Neoagarohexaose Attenuates Inflammatory and Oxidative Joint Injury in MIA/CIOA Mouse Models of Osteoarthritis.International journal of molecular sciences · 2026Article
- Topical Pain Management: An Updated Review of Current Evidence and Emerging Strategies.Journal of clinical medicine · 2026Review
- Structural tuning of diclofenac for enhanced medicinal efficacy and reduced adverse effects: an integrating computational validation.RSC advances · 2026Article
- Evaluating adverse events reported for non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs in osteoarthritis: a real-world pharmacovigilance study.Inflammopharmacology · 2026Article
- Assessment of Hydrogels for Intra-Articulate Application, Based on Sodium Hyaluronate Doped with Synthetic Polymers and Incorporated with Diclofenac Sodium.International journal of molecular sciences · 2025Article
- Bimodal Dissolving Microneedles with Nanoparticle Coating and Encapsulation for Extended Dual-Drug Delivery.Small (Weinheim an der Bergstrasse, Germany) · 2025Article
- Evaluating the Real-World Use of Topical Diclofenac Sodium Gel 1% Using US Longitudinal Electronic Health Records Database: A study supporting OTC switch.Pain and therapy · 2025Article
- Evaluation of the In Vitro Permeation Parameters of Topical Diclofenac Sodium from Transdermal PentravanPharmaceuticals (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- ZIF-67 decorated with silica nanoparticles and graphene oxide nanosheets composite modified electrode for simultaneous determination of paracetamol and diclofenac.Scientific reports · 2025Article
- Regular Use of Oral Nonsteroidal Anti-inflammatory Drugs in a Population of Polish Seniors: Findings from the PolSenior2 Cross-Sectional Survey.Drugs & aging · 2025Article
- Enhancing Transcutaneous Drug Delivery: Advanced Perspectives on Skin Models.JID innovations : skin science from molecules to population health · 2025Review
- Triptolide attenuates LPS-induced chondrocyte inflammation by inhibiting inflammasome activation via the Wnt/β-catenin and NF-κB signaling pathways.Cytotechnology · 2025Article
- Long Duration Continuous Ultrasound with Diclofenac Sodium Enhances Recovery from Sprains and Strains.International journal on physical medication & rehabilitation · 2025Article
- Osteoarthritis: multitissue pathology, molecular mechanisms, clinical management, and emerging precision and regenerative therapies.Frontiers in pharmacology · 2025Review
- Recent development of mitochondrial metabolism and dysfunction in osteoarthritis.Frontiers in pharmacology · 2025Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
3 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Multiple head-to-head trials have demonstrated that topical nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), including topical diclofenac, provide at least equivalent analgesia, improvement in physical function, and reduction of stiffness compared with oral NSAIDs in osteoarthritis and have fewer systemic adverse events. While efficacy of topical diclofenac in osteoarthritis is well established, understanding of the time to onset of action, duration of effect, and the minimum effective concentration is limited. Factors likely to influence these parameters include drug penetration and localization. Diclofenac concentrations in the joint tissues are likely to be more relevant than plasma concentrations. However, although diclofenac penetrates and is retained in these "effect compartments" at the site of inflammation and drug activity, no specific minimum effective concentration of diclofenac in plasma or synovial tissue has been identified. Recent evidence suggests that a reduction in inflammatory markers may be a better predictor of efficacy than plasma concentrations. This narrative review explores existing evidence in these areas and identifies the gaps where further research is needed. Based on our findings, topical NSAIDs such as diclofenac should be considered as a guideline-supported, generally well-tolerated, and effective first-line treatment option for knee and hand OA, especially for older patients and those who have comorbid conditions and/or risk factors for various systemic (gastrointestinal, hepatic, renal, or cardiovascular) adverse events associated with oral NSAIDs, particularly at high doses and with long-term use.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.