Summary
Meloxicam has reached the approved stage (maximum clinical phase 4) for at least one indication, so its use in Rheumatoid Arthritis would be drug repurposing rather than first-in-human development. This does not mean it is approved for Rheumatoid Arthritis. ClinicalTrials.gov lists 8 registered trials linking Meloxicam to Rheumatoid Arthritis: 8 have completed. The most advanced is Phase 4 (NCT00447759). The largest enrolment is 22639 participants (NCT02184065). Registration activity spans 2000 to 2007. The literature layer holds 11 publications for this pair: 2 Cochrane reviews, 3 meta-analyses, 1 randomised controlled trial publication and 5 clinical trial publications. Publication years run from 2003 to 2021. Because at least one synthesis-level source exists (systematic review, meta-analysis or Cochrane review), this pair has been assessed beyond single studies, although the synthesis may concern a different indication.
The RepurpOS disease-intelligence file for Rheumatoid Arthritis ranks 544 candidate therapeutics from Open Targets, ChEMBL, DGIdb and PubMed; only a minority carry direct clinical evidence, and this page covers one of those. Spontaneous remission context recorded for the condition: 11% achieve drug-free remission (DFR) at median 74 months; most cohorts show 10-15% DFR ceiling.
Evidence table
| Evidence tier | A · Strong |
|---|---|
| Evidence score | 80.0 (trials 30.0, literature 30.0, tier 15, approved bonus 5.0) |
| Registered trials | 8 total: 0 recruiting, 0 active / not yet recruiting, 8 completed, 0 other |
| Linked publications | 11 (5 clinical trial publications, 3 meta-analyses, 2 Cochrane reviews, 1 randomised controlled trial publication) |
| Agent type | Drug (Small molecule) |
| Development stage (any indication) | Approved |
| Mechanism / class | Not recorded |
| Data sources | Open Targets, ChEMBL |
How the evidence score is calculated
- Each registered trial scores by status (recruiting / active / enrolling 3, completed 2.5, not yet recruiting 2, unknown 1, terminated / withdrawn / suspended 0.5) plus a phase bonus (phase 3-4 +2, phase 2 +1, phase 1 +0.5). The trial component is capped at 30.
- Each literature item scores by design (Cochrane review 5, meta-analysis 4, systematic review 3, RCT 3, clinical trial publication 2, curated reference 1.5, other PubMed record 1). The literature component is capped at 30.
- The existing evidence tier adds 15 (A / Strong), 10 (B / Moderate), 5 (C / Preliminary) or 0 (D / Anecdotal).
- Agents approved for any indication (max clinical phase 4) add 5, because an approved agent has an established safety profile that lowers the barrier to repurposing trials.
- The score ranks what has been studied, not what works. It does not read effect sizes or directions of effect.
Registered clinical trials
| NCT ID | Title | Status | Phase | Enrolment |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| NCT00447759 | The Standard Care Versus Celecoxib Outcome Trial 2007 | completed | Phase 4 | 7,297 |
| NCT00239382 | A Study to Compare Meloxicam IM Once Daily Versus Meloxicam Orally Once Daily in Patients With Rheumatoid Arthritis 2004 | completed | Phase 3 | 150 |
| NCT00034853 | Meloxicam [Mobic] in Juvenile Rheumatoid Arthritis (JRA) 2000 | completed | Phase 3 | 180 |
| NCT00042068 | A Multi-Center Trial to Compare Three Doses of Meloxicam and Placebo in Patients With Rheumatoid Arthritis 2002 | completed | Phase 3 | 1,000 |
| NCT00279747 | A One Year Double-blind Trial to Investigate the Efficacy and Safety of Meloxicam Oral Suspension in Juvenile Rheumatoid Arthritis (JRA/JIA) 2000 | completed | Phase 3 | 226 |
| NCT02180516 | Safety and Efficacy of Meloxicam Compared to Other Nonsteroidal Antiinflammatory Drugs (NSAIDs) in an Observational Cohort Study of Patients With Rheumatoid Arthritis, Osteoarthritis, Lumbago, Scapulohumeral Periarthritis, Neck, Shoulder and Arm Syndrome 2001 | completed | Not applicable | 9,984 |
| NCT00612885 | Safety and Efficacy of Mobic Inj. (Meloxicam) for the Patients With OA or RA: Observational Study 2004 | completed | Not applicable | 425 |
| NCT02184065 | Observational Study of Meloxicam in Mexican Patients With Rheumatic Diseases 2004 | completed | Not applicable | 22,639 |
Published literature
- Meta-analysis Clinical safety of total glucosides of paeony adjuvant therapy for rheumatoid arthritis treatment: a systematic review and meta-analysisLiu B, Meng X, Ma Y et al. · BMC complementary medicine and therapies · 2021 · PMID 33771151
- Clinical trial publication [Clinical therapeutic effects on rheumatoid arthritis treated with the assisted therapy of acupuncture at the points detected with thermosensitive moxibustion in Zhuang medicine]Huang A, Pang Y, Tang Q et al. · Zhongguo zhen jiu = Chinese acupuncture & moxibustion · 2018 · PMID 29701040
- Clinical trial publication A randomized multicenter clinical trial of (99) Tc-methylene diphosphonate in treatment of rheumatoid arthritisMu R, Liang J, Sun L et al. · International journal of rheumatic diseases · 2018 · PMID 29356462
- Cochrane review Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) for chronic non-cancer pain in children and adolescentsEccleston C, Cooper TE, Fisher E et al. · The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2017 · PMID 28770976
- Cochrane review Celecoxib for rheumatoid arthritisFidahic M, Jelicic Kadic A, Radic M et al. · The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2017 · PMID 28597983
- Clinical trial publication Safety and efficacy of long-term esomeprazole 20 mg in Japanese patients with a history of peptic ulcer receiving daily non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugsSugano K, Kinoshita Y, Miwa H et al. · BMC gastroenterology · 2013 · PMID 23530709
- Clinical trial publication Comparable efficacy of standardized Ayurveda formulation and hydroxychloroquine sulfate (HCQS) in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis (RA): a randomized investigator-blind controlled studyChopra A, Saluja M, Tillu G et al. · Clinical rheumatology · 2012 · PMID 21773714
- Clinical trial publication [Effects of wenhua juanbi recipe on TNF-alpha and IL-1beta in peripheral blood of rheumatoid arthritis patients]Liu XD, Zhang JL, Ye LH · Zhongguo Zhong xi yi jie he za zhi Zhongguo Zhongxiyi jiehe zazhi = Chinese journal of integrated traditional and Western medicine · 2009 · PMID 19960973
- Meta-analysis Cyclooxygenase-2 selective non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (etodolac, meloxicam, celecoxib, rofecoxib, etoricoxib, valdecoxib and lumiracoxib) for osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis: a systematic review and economic evaluationChen YF, Jobanputra P, Barton P et al. · Health technology assessment (Winchester, England) · 2008 · PMID 18405470
- Randomized controlled trial [Clinical randomized study of bee-sting therapy for rheumatoid arthritis]Liu XD, Zhang JL, Zheng HG et al. · Zhen ci yan jiu = Acupuncture research · 2008 · PMID 18807725
- Meta-analysis [Meta-analysis on the effect and adverse reaction on patients with osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis treated with non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs]Shi W, Wang YM, Cheng NN et al. · Zhonghua liu xing bing xue za zhi = Zhonghua liuxingbingxue zazhi · 2003 · PMID 14687510
Mechanism and notes
No mechanism of action is recorded for this pair in the source databases.
OSMF's existing evidence tier for this pair is A (Strong), derived from the strength of the disease association recorded in Open Targets and ChEMBL. The tier describes how well the drug-disease link is documented, not how well the drug works.
Frequently asked questions
Is Meloxicam approved for Rheumatoid Arthritis?
Meloxicam has reached the approved stage (maximum clinical phase 4) for at least one indication, so its use in Rheumatoid Arthritis would be drug repurposing rather than first-in-human development. This does not mean it is approved for Rheumatoid Arthritis. Approval status for the specific indication should always be confirmed with the relevant regulator and prescribing information.
Is Meloxicam in clinical trials for Rheumatoid Arthritis?
ClinicalTrials.gov lists 8 registered trials linking Meloxicam to Rheumatoid Arthritis: 8 have completed. The most advanced is Phase 4 (NCT00447759). The largest enrolment is 22639 participants (NCT02184065). Registration activity spans 2000 to 2007.
What does the evidence show for Meloxicam in Rheumatoid Arthritis?
Meloxicam has both completed registered trials and synthesis-level publications linked to Rheumatoid Arthritis. That is the strongest profile in this database, but the summaries here do not extract effect sizes, so read the linked reviews for direction and magnitude of benefit. OSMF's existing evidence tier for this pair is A (Strong), derived from the strength of the disease association recorded in Open Targets and ChEMBL. The tier describes how well the drug-disease link is documented, not how well the drug works.
Cite this page
Data: ClinicalTrials.gov, PubMed, Open Targets, ChEMBL, DGIdb and the OSMF therapeutic agent database. Last updated 2026-07-05. Page built 2026-10-07.