Abstract:Objective To investigate the effects of diacerein combined with sodium hyaluronate in the treatment of knee osteoarthritis and its effects on cytokines and toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4)/nuclear factor kappa B (NF- κB) signal pathway. Methods A total of 100 patients with knee osteoarthritis receiving treatment in Xi'an Honghui Hospital and Xijing Hospital from June 2016 to May 2019 were randomly divided into observation group (n = 50) and control group (n = 50). The control group was given sodium hyaluronate injection once a week, while the observation group was given 50 mg diacerein capsules twice daily on the basis of the control group. The course of treatment was 5 weeks in both groups. The Lysholm knee score, visual analogue scale (VAS) score, serum cytokines including interleukin (IL)-1β, IL-6 and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), and TLR4 and NF-κB protein expression in synovium before and 5 weeks after treatment were compared between the two groups. Results There was no significant difference in the overall effective rate between the two groups (P > 0.05). The differences of Lysholm knee score and VAS score before and 5 weeks after treatment in the observation group were higher than those in the control group (P < 0.05). The differences of serum IL-1β, IL-6 and TNF-α before and 5 weeks after treatment in the observation group were higher than those in the control group (P < 0.05). The differences of TLR4 and NF-κB protein expression in synovium before and 5 weeks after treatment in the observation group were higher than those in the control group (P < 0.05). Conclusion The diacerein combined with sodium hyaluronate has a good effect in the treatment of knee osteoarthritis. The underlying mechanism may be related to the decrease of IL1β, IL-6 and TNF-α levels and the down-regulation of TLR4/NF-κB expression.