Piroxicam is a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) of the oxicam class used to relieve the symptoms of painful inflammatory conditions like arthritis.

[4][5] Piroxicam works by preventing the production of endogenous prostaglandins which are involved in the mediation of pain, stiffness, tenderness and swelling.

[4] The European Medicines Agency issued a review of its use in 2007 and recommended that its use be limited to the treatment of chronic inflammatory conditions, as it is only in these circumstances that its risk-benefit ratio proves to be favourable.

[6][9] As with other NSAIDs the principal side effects include: digestive complaints like nausea, discomfort, diarrhoea and bleeds or ulceration of the stomach, as well as headache, dizziness, nervousness, depression, drowsiness, insomnia, vertigo, hearing disturbances (such as tinnitus), high blood pressure, oedema, light sensitivity, skin reactions (including, albeit rarely, Stevens–Johnson syndrome and toxic epidermal necrolysis) and rarely, kidney failure, pancreatitis, liver damage, visual disturbances, pulmonary eosinophilia and fibrosing alveolitis.

[12] The project that produced piroxicam began in 1962 at Pfizer; the first clinical trial results were reported in 1977, and the product launched in 1980 under the brand name "Feldene".