Safety and efficacy of cyclooxygenase-2 inhibition for treatment of primary hypertrophic osteoarthropathy: A single-arm intervention trial

BACKGROUND: Primary hypertrophic osteoarthropathy (PHO) is a rare disease involving joint, bone and skin. Two underlying genes responsible for this disease—hydroxyprostaglandin dehydrogenase (HPGD) and solute carrier organic anion transporter family, member 2A1 (SLCO2A1)—are both associated with aberrant accumulation of prostaglandin E2 (PGE2). Cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) is a key enzyme in PGE2 synthesis. This study was intended to evaluate the safety and efficacy of COX-2 inhibitor in the treatment of PHO. METHODS: We recruited patients presenting to Peking Union Medical Hospital between January 2009 and December 2016 who were diagnosed with PHO. Participants were given the COX-2 inhibitor etoricoxib (60 mg once daily) and followed up for 9 months. Gene analysis was performed at baseline. The following data were collected at baseline and during treatment: visual analogue score (VAS), volume of the distal middle finger (VDMF), knee joint circumference (KJC), serum and urinary levels of prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) and PGE metabolite (PGE-M) and serum levels of inflammatory markers. RESULTS: A total of 27 patients were recruited, including seven patients with PHO type I (PHOAR1) carrying HPGD gene mutations and 20 patients with PHO type II (PHOAR2) carrying SLCO2A1 gene mutations. After treatment with etoricoxib, the majority of patients experienced resolution of symptoms including pachydermia (60.9%), joint swelling (100%), digital clubbing (74.1%) and hyperhidrosis (55.0%). In both the PHO subtypes, serum and urinary levels of PGE2 were elevated at baseline and declined sharply upon treatment. For PHOAR1 patients, serum and urinary PGE-M levels were relatively low and demonstrated minimal response to COX-2 inhibition. Among PHOAR2 patients, mean serum and urinary levels of PGE-M presented at a high level at baseline and were normalized after 3 months of treatment. No severe adverse effects were reported during the study period. CONCLUSIONS: We found COX-2 inhibitor to be safe and effective for the treatment of PHO in our cohort. THE TRANSLATIONAL POTENTIAL OF THIS ARTICLE: The underlying genes responsible for PHO suggest COX inhibitor as potential therapy, and our study demonstrates the efficacy and safety of this treatment.