Trial of Colchicine Versus Prednisone for the Treatment of Acute CPPD Arthritis

Chondrocalcinosis, recently renamed the calcium pyrophosphate deposition (CPPD) disease, is a very frequent affection of the elderly and causes very painful arthritis. International recommendations for the treatment of patients suffering from CPPD are based upon rare studies, not randomized, with small samples, and thus very weak scientific evidence. Some factors are known to trigger CPPD arthritis (trauma, surgery, infection, hospitalization). Prevalence increases with age, and case series estimate the presence of chondrocalcinosis in over 20% of 80 plus years population. International recommendations for the treatment of patients suffering from CPPD are based upon rare studies, not randomized, with small samples, and thus very weak scientific evidence. The treatment of CPPD arthritis is extrapolated from the experience of gout treatment, another crystal deposition disease (this one related to monosodium urate crystals that deposit after long-standing hyperuricemia. Among recommended treatments, colchicine and oral steroids are recommended as first-line treatments, while NSAIDs are used with caution in elderly populations of patients. Colchicine utilization is not risk-free, in particular with old patients and patients with renal impairment. Drug interactions of colchicine can have serious consequences, especially in a polymedicated old patient's population. Oral steroids offer an interesting alternative with the potential of being better tolerated. However, even oral steroids are recommended, their efficacy in CPPD arthritis isn't demonstrated. Interesting comparative results with NSAIDs were shown for the treatment of gout flares. These results may not be fully extrapolated to CPPD which holds differences with gout. In addition, oral steroids were not compared to colchicine which is the benchmark treatment in many countries for CPPD. The aim of this study is to compare the efficacy of colchicine and oral steroids for the treatment of CPPD acute arthritis and compare their tolerance profile. It is the first large randomized controlled trial comparing two treatments of CPPD acute arthritis.