Abstract: As a degenerative joint disorder commonly encountered in clinical practice, osteoarthritis (OA) causes joint pain and motor dysfunction in patients, and is the leading cause of disability in elderly people. Due to the poor self-healing capacity of articular cartilage and the unclear etiopathogenesis of OA, treatments options are still very limited. Traditional pharmaceutical therapy aiming at pain relief and anti-inflammation is still the most common treatment option for OA although it can only control the symptoms with high incidence of adverse effects. Studies of new OA drugs with increased effectiveness and less side effects are underway, with some of these drugs entering the market or clinical trials. In this article, the advances in research on pharmacotherapy of osteoarthritis were reviewed.