The correct answer is False. Guidelines no longer recommend regular paracetamol because of its minimal effect on pain and increasing evidence of gastrointestinal, cardiovascular and renal adverse reactions, along with increased mortality risk[13].
The correct answer is topical NSAIDs have similar efficacy to oral NSAIDs in reducing pain, with reduced risk of systemic adverse events. Topical NSAIDs are preferred to oral NSAIDs for knee and hand OA[2,3].
The correct answer is similar. Two meta-analyses have shown similar pain relief to oral NSAIDs in OA[17,18]. Given the risk of chemical dependence, opioids are either strongly recommended against for all OA phenotypes (OARSI)[1] or weakly recommended as a last resort or when joint replacement is contraindicated (ESCEO)[2].
The correct answer is long-term benefits. Short-term treatment with intra-articular corticosteroids is recommended since meta-analyses have shown less evidence of long-term benefits (post-4 weeks after injection)[12].