Note from the National Guideline Clearinghouse (NGC): This guideline was developed by the National Collaborating Centre for Chronic Conditions (NCCCC) on behalf of the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE). See the "Availability of Companion Documents" field for the full version of this guidance.
Holistic Approach to Osteoarthritis Assessment and Management
- Healthcare professionals should assess the effect of osteoarthritis on the individual's function, quality of life, occupation, mood, relationships, and leisure activities. Figure 1 in the original guideline document should be used as an aid to prompt questions that should be asked as part of the holistic assessment of a person with osteoarthritis.
Figure 1 in the original guideline document is intended as an aide memoir to provide a breakdown of key topics that are of common concern when assessing people with osteoarthritis. Within each topic are a few suggested specific points worth assessing. Not every topic will be of concern for everyone with osteoarthritis, and there are other specifics which may warrant consideration for particular people.
- People with symptomatic osteoarthritis should have periodic review tailored to their individual needs.
- Healthcare professionals should formulate a management plan in partnership with the person with osteoarthritis.
- Comorbidities that compound the effect of osteoarthritis should be taken into consideration in the management plan.
- Healthcare professionals should offer all people with clinically symptomatic osteoarthritis advice on the following core treatments:
- The risks and benefits of treatment options, taking into account comorbidities, should be communicated to the patient in ways that can be understood.
Refer to Figure 2 in the original guideline document for a summary of treatments in the remaining recommendations.
Education and Self-Management
Patient Information
- Healthcare professionals should offer accurate verbal and written information to all people with osteoarthritis to enhance understanding of the condition and its management, and to counter misconceptions, such as that it inevitably progresses and cannot be treated. Information sharing should be an ongoing, integral part of the management plan rather than a single event at time of presentation.
Patient Self-Management Interventions
- Individualised self-management strategies should be agreed between healthcare professionals and the person with osteoarthritis. Positive behavioural changes, such as exercise, weight loss, use of suitable footwear and pacing, should be appropriately targeted.
- Self-management programmes, either individually or in groups, should emphasise the recommended core treatments (see "Holistic Approach to Osteoarthritis Assessment and Management" section above) for people with osteoarthritis, especially exercise.
Thermotherapy
- The use of local heat or cold should be considered as an adjunct to core treatment.
Non-Pharmacological Management of Osteoarthritis
Exercise and Manual Therapy
- Exercise should be a core treatment (see "Holistic Approach to Osteoarthritis Assessment and Management" section above) for people with osteoarthritis, irrespective of age, comorbidity, pain severity or disability. Exercise should include:
- Local muscle strengthening
- General aerobic fitness
It has not been specified whether exercise should be provided by the NHS or whether the healthcare professional should provide advice and encouragement to the patient to obtain and carry out the intervention themselves. Exercise has been found to be beneficial but the clinician needs to make a judgement in each case on how to effectively ensure patient participation. This will depend upon the patient's individual needs, circumstances, self-motivation and the availability of local facilities.
- Manipulation and stretching should be considered as an adjunct to core treatment, particularly for osteoarthritis of the hip.
Weight Loss
- Interventions to achieve weight loss* should be a core treatment (see "Holistic Approach to Osteoarthritis Assessment and Management" section above) for people who are obese or overweight.
*Note: See the NGC summary of the NICE guideline Obesity: the prevention, identification, assessment and management of overweight and obesity in adults and children.
Electrotherapy
- Healthcare professionals should consider the use of transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS)* as an adjunct to core treatment for pain relief.
**Note: TENS machines are generally loaned to the patient by the NHS for a short period, and if effective the patient is advised where they can purchase their own.
Acupuncture
- Electro-acupuncture should not be used to treat people with osteoarthritis.***
***Note: There is not enough consistent evidence of clinical or cost effectiveness to allow a firm recommendation on the use of acupuncture for the treatment of osteoarthritis.
Aids and Devices
- Healthcare professionals should offer advice on appropriate footwear (including shock-absorbing properties) as part of core treatment (see "Holistic Approach to Osteoarthritis Assessment and Management" section above) for people with lower limb osteoarthritis.
- People with osteoarthritis who have biomechanical joint pain or instability should be considered for assessment for bracing/joint supports/insoles as an adjunct to their core treatment.
- Assistive devices (for example, walking sticks and tap turners) should be considered as adjuncts to core treatment for people with osteoarthritis who have specific problems with activities of daily living. Healthcare professionals may need to seek expert advice in this context (for example, from occupational therapists or Disability Equipment Assessment Centres).
Nutraceuticals
- The use of glucosamine or chondroitin products is not recommended for the treatment of osteoarthritis.
Invasive Treatments for Knee Osteoarthritis
- Referral for arthroscopic lavage and debridement* should not be offered as part of treatment for osteoarthritis, unless the person has knee osteoarthritis with a clear history of mechanical locking (not gelling, 'giving way' or X-ray evidence of loose bodies).
*Note: This recommendation is a refinement of the indication in 'Arthroscopic knee washout, with or without debridement, for the treatment of osteoarthritis' (NICE interventional procedure guidance 230). This guideline has reviewed the clinical and cost-effectiveness evidence, which has led to this more specific recommendation on the indication for which arthroscopic lavage and debridement is judged to be clinically and cost effective.
Pharmacological Management of Osteoarthritis
Oral Analgesics
- Healthcare professionals should consider offering paracetamol for pain relief in addition to core treatment (see figure 2 in the original guideline document); regular dosing may be required. Paracetamol and/or topical non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) should be considered ahead of oral NSAIDs, cyclo-oxygenase 2 (COX-2) inhibitors or opioids.
- If paracetamol or topical NSAIDs are insufficient for pain relief for people with osteoarthritis, then the addition of opioid analgesics should be considered. Risks and benefits should be considered, particularly in elderly people.
Topical Treatments
- Healthcare professionals should consider offering topical NSAIDs for pain relief in addition to core treatment (see figure 2 in the original guideline document) for people with knee or hand osteoarthritis. Topical NSAIDs and/or paracetamol should be considered ahead of oral NSAIDs, COX-2 inhibitors, or opioids.
- Topical capsaicin should be considered as an adjunct to core treatment for knee or hand osteoarthritis.
- Rubefacients are not recommended for the treatment of osteoarthritis.
NSAIDs and Highly Selective COX-2 Inhibitors
Although NSAIDs and COX-2 inhibitors may be regarded as a single drug class of 'NSAIDs', these recommendations continue to use the two terms for clarity, and because of the differences in side-effect profile. The recommendations in this section are derived from extensive health-economic modelling, which included December 2007 NHS drug tariff costs. This guideline replaces the osteoarthritis aspects only of NICE technology appraisal guidance 27. The guideline recommendations are based on up-to-date evidence on efficacy and adverse events, current costs and an expanded health-economic analysis of cost effectiveness. This has led to an increased role for COX-2 inhibitors, an increased awareness of all potential adverse events (gastrointestinal, liver and cardio-renal) and a recommendation to co-prescribe a proton pump inhibitor (PPI).
- Where paracetamol or topical NSAIDs are ineffective for pain relief for people with osteoarthritis, then substitution with an oral NSAID/COX-2 inhibitor should be considered.
- Where paracetamol or topical NSAIDs provide insufficient pain relief for people with osteoarthritis, then the addition of an oral NSAID/COX-2 inhibitor to paracetamol should be considered.
- Oral NSAIDs/COX-2 inhibitors should be used at the lowest effective dose for the shortest possible period of time.
- When offering treatment with an oral NSAID/COX-2 inhibitor, the first choice should be either a standard NSAID or a COX-2 inhibitor (other than etoricoxib 60 mg). In either case, these should be co-prescribed with a PPI, choosing the one with the lowest acquisition cost.
- All oral NSAIDs/COX-2 inhibitors have analgesic effects of a similar magnitude but vary in their potential gastrointestinal, liver and cardio-renal toxicity; therefore, when choosing the agent and dose, healthcare professionals should take into account individual patient risk factors, including age. When prescribing these drugs, consideration should be given to appropriate assessment and/or ongoing monitoring of these risk factors.
- If a person with osteoarthritis needs to take low-dose aspirin, healthcare professionals should consider other analgesics before substituting or adding an NSAID or COX-2 inhibitor (with a PPI) if pain relief is ineffective or insufficient.
Intra-Articular Injections
- Intra-articular corticosteroid injections should be considered as an adjunct to core treatment for the relief of moderate to severe pain in people with osteoarthritis.
- Intra-articular hyaluronan injections are not recommended for the treatment of osteoarthritis.
Referral for Specialist Services
Referral Criteria for Surgery
- Clinicians with responsibility for referring a person with osteoarthritis for consideration of joint surgery should ensure that the person has been offered at least the core (non-surgical) treatment options (see "Holistic Approach to Osteoarthritis Assessment and Management" section above and figure 2 in the original guideline document).
- Referral for joint replacement surgery should be considered for people with osteoarthritis who experience joint symptoms (pain, stiffness and reduced function) that have a substantial impact on their quality of life and are refractory to non-surgical treatment. Referral should be made before there is prolonged and established functional limitation and severe pain.
- Patient-specific factors (including age, gender, smoking, obesity, and comorbidities) should not be barriers to referral for joint replacement surgery.
- Decisions on referral thresholds should be based on discussions between patient representatives, referring clinicians, and surgeons, rather than using current scoring tools for prioritisation.
