DOCTORS in Southampton are urging arthritis patients to trial a breakthrough drug.

Patients across the UK will be testing a new drug specifically helping those with knee arthritis and eight participants from the city will be joining the trial.

The study has been launched by Arthritis Research UK and will see 160 people test methotrexate, commonly taken by rheumatoid arthritis patients at the NIHR Welcome Trust Southampton Clinical Research Facility.

Dr Chris Edwards, a consultant rheumatologist at Southampton General Hospital, said: “Current treatments for knee osteoarthritis are limited in that they only work for short periods and are not suitable for many people.

“As a result, patients often live with severe pain and have significant difficulty in carrying out their normal day-to-day activities, so there is an urgent need to find new and better ways of managing their pain.”

The trial drug can reduce inflammation in rheumatoid arthritis patients and studies by Arthritis Research UK suggest it may be able to do the same for people battling osteoarthritis.

Dr Edwards, associate director at the NIHR Clinical Research Facility in Southampton General Hospital, added: “Pilot studies have shown that 3 per cent of patients with knee osteoarthritis who took methotrexate had a 40 per cent reduction in their pain, so we now hope to provide further evidence of its success.”

The Southampton study needs people with moderate to severe osteoarthritis of the knee who are not benefitting from traditional treatments like painkillers to come forward.

Half of the people will take methotrexate for 12 months and the other half will take a placebo.

All patients will have an MRI scan of their knee and have to complete a questionnaire every three months.

To find out more Contact the research team at Southampton General Hospital on 023 8120 5279 or email rheumatologyresearch@uhs.nhs.uk.