Etodolac: An overview of a selective COX-2 inhibitor

Etodolac is a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) which has been shown to be effective in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis and a selective COX-2 inhibitor in a wide range of clinically relevant assays in direct comparisons with other NSAIDs. Studies have shown etodolac to have no overall suppression of gastric or duodenal prostaglandins and endoscopic analysis with etodolac showed placebo level scores in comparison with ibuprofen, which showed inducement of gastro-intestinal (GI) side effects. This high degree of gastric tolerability was further demonstrated by microbleeding studies. The favourable GI tolerability profile of etodolac has been shown in long-term and large-scale trials and by routine clinical observation. In summary, etodolac is a well established selective COX-2 inhibitor that has been shown not to suppress gastric or duodenal prostaglandins, to have minimal hepatic or renal effects and to have favourable GI tolerability in comparison with ibuprofen.