Characteristics of trials and participants.
| Xu 2016 | Zhang 2014 | Rainer 2016 | Janssens 2008 | Man 2007 | Alloway 1993 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Trial characteristics | ||||||
| Design | RCT | RCT | RCT | RCT | RCT | Quasi-RCT |
| Duration of treatment, days | 4 | 7 | 5 | 5 | 5 | Not described |
| Length of followup | 4 days | 7 days | 14 days | 3 weeks | 14 days | 30 days |
| Clinical setting | Ward | Ward | ED | Clinic | ED | Not described |
| Location | China | China | Hong Kong | Netherlands | Hong Kong | USA |
| Participants | ||||||
| Number | 113 | 60 | 416 | 118 | 90 | 20 |
| Corticosteroid | 33 | 30 | 208 | 59 | 44 | 10 |
| NSAID | 80 | 30 | 208 | 59 | 46 | 10 |
| Age, mean (SD) | ||||||
| Corticosteroid | 44.0 (15.4) | 52.3 (13.5) | 65.9 (15.0) | 57.3 (12.2) | 64 (15) | 61.2 (7.4) |
| NSAID | 44.2 (13.8) | 54.2 (15.1) | 64.4 (16.0) | 57.7 (13.4) | 66 (16) | 62.8 (11.2) |
| Male, % | ||||||
| Corticosteroid | 100.0 | 96.7 | 69.7 | 90 | 80 | 100 |
| NSAID | 98.8 | 96.7 | 78.8 | 88 | 85 | 100 |
| Diagnosis of gout | Clinical criteria | Clinical criteria | Clinical criteria | MSU crystal | Clinical criteria | MSU crystal |
| Duration of attack | ≤ 72 h | ≤ 24 h | ≤ 72 h | Not described | ≤ 72 h | ≤ 5 days |
| Intervention | ||||||
| Corticosteroid | Prednisolone (oral) | Betamethasone (IM) | Prednisolone (oral) | Prednisolone (oral) | Prednisolone (oral) | Triamcinolone acetonide (IM) |
| Dose | 35 mg qd | 7 mg once | 30 mg qd | 35 mg qd | 30 mg qd | 60 mg once |
| NSAID | Etoricoxib / indomethacin (oral) | Diclofenac sodium (oral) | Indomethacin (oral) | Naproxen (oral) | Indomethacin (oral) | Indomethacin (oral) |
| Dose | 120 mg qd / 50 mg tid | 75 mg bid | 50 mg tid, then 25 mg tid | 500 mg bid | 50 mg tid, then 25 mg tid | 50 mg tid |
| Supplementary analgesics | None | None | Paracetamol (oral) | None | Acetaminophen (oral) | Acetaminophen with codeine |
| Cointerventions (non-randomized) | Aspirin, allopurinol (oral) | None | None | None | None | Colchicine, allopurinol, uricosuric (oral) |
| Outcomes | ||||||
| Pain | x* | x* | x | x | x | |
| Response to therapy | x | x | x* | |||
| Time to resolution | x | |||||
| Supplementary analgesics | x | x | ||||
| Adverse events | x | x | x | x | x | x |
| Other outcomes | x | x | x | x |
↵* Data could not be pooled in the metaanalysis. RCT: randomized controlled trials; NSAID: nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drugs; MSU: monosodium urate; IM: intramuscular; qd: once per day; bid: twice a day; tid: three times a day; ED: emergency department.