| Treatment groups |  | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Characteristic | Placebo | Diclofenac | EA | Combined | p-value ** |
n (M:F) | 47 (12:35) | 49 (11:38) | 48 (10:38) | 49 (10:39) | 0.93c |
Age (yr)* | 62.70 (7.22) | 62.14 (7.53) | 65.10 (3.40) | 61.84 (8.95) | 0.16a |
Body weight (kg)* | 60.65 (10.24) | 57.65 (10.64) | 59.89 (9.74) | 59.92 (9.66) | 0.49a |
Height (cm)* | 153.94 (6.45) | 151.94 (10.71) | 152.19 (5.89) | 153.32 (6.73) | 0.54a |
Duration of OA (yr)* | 4.98 (3.32) | 3.94 (2.83) | 6.09 (4.96) | 4.53 (3.86) | 0.05a |
Localization of OA | Â | Â | Â | Â | 0.40c |
Right/Left knee | 2/3 | 2/6 | 1/4 | 3/5 | Â |
Both knees | 42 | 41 | 43 | 41 | Â |
Number of paracetamol tablets taken per week* | 22.06 (13.75) | 18.94 (14.68) | 21.40 (14.97) | 19.04 (14.87) | 0.63a |
50 ft-walk time (sec)* | 22.04 (4.81) | 22.36 (6.00) | 24.54 (8.14) | 22.77 (5.13) | 0.21a |
VAS* | 63.49 (22.36) | 64.79 (23.41) | 66.87 (22.34) | 57.63 (21.21) | 0.21a |
WOMAC* | Â | Â | Â | Â | Â |
   Pain index | 10.19 (4.20) | 11.02 (4.15) | 10.25 (3.86) | 10.50 (4.18) | 0.75a |
   Stiffness index | 4.51 (1.71) | 4.08 (1.95) | 4.35 (2.10) | 4.27 (1.57) | 0.72a |
   Disability index | 37.04 (12.00) | 35.65 (12.89) | 38.00 (13.18) | 37.94 (13.02) | 0.79a |
   Total score | 51.75 (15.96) | 50.76 (17.98) | 52.60 (18.13) | 52.71 (17.65) | 0.94a |
Lequesne's functional index* | 13.78 (3.78) | 13.85 (3.22) | 14.14 (2.98) | 13.73 (2.92) | 0.93a |