According to a Phase III study published in the August 2010 Clinical Drug Investigation, tapentadol (a centrally acting, extended-release, analgesic) was more effective in terms of pain relief from knee osteoarthritis but with fewer side effects than are seen with oxycodone. Tapentadol significantly reduced the average pain intensity for up to 12 weeks versus placebo.
Constipation was less of a problem with tapentadol than with oxycodone. Also, the overall incidence of adverse events for tapentadol, oxycodone, and placebo were 75.9%, 87.4% and 61.1% respectively. Researchers believe that adding norepinephrine reuptake inhibition to opioid receptor agonism may create an opioid-sparing effect that might account for the higher tolerability to tapentadol. Further studies would be needed to fully determine the adverse event profile.
Related Resources:
- Tapentadol for Osteoarthritis Pain
- Tapentadol Better Than Oxycodone for OA Pain
- 10 Things You Should Know About Analgesics
- Osteoarthritis Medications - What Are My Options?
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