effective Anti-inflam. medicine w/ least side effects

[BigEleven]

I have been avoiding anti-inflam. medicine because of the side effects and the extra burden they put on some of the organs. But now I have inflammation in my foot and I have pains in my knees, wrist, and shoulder. So what will be a good choice of anti-inflam. medicine?

[El Diablo]

Aspirin. Reduces your risk of stroke, heart attack, colon cancer and probably dementia, while helping you feel better. All the other antiinflammatories probably only reduce the risk of dementia.

[LuckyR]

Originally Posted by BigEleven

I have been avoiding anti-inflam. medicine because of the side effects and the extra burden they put on some of the organs. But now I have inflammation in my foot and I have pains in my knees, wrist, and shoulder. So what will be a good choice of anti-inflam. medicine?

When you say "side effects" do you mean effects you have dealt with personally or a list out of some book?

[andreh]

All NSAID primarily has side-effects on your stomach. In worst case scenarios they can lead ulcers, but you'd most likley have to take very high doses for an extended period of time.

All other side-effects (like heart problems) etc are very low probability if you are healty and take them in moderation, although this has been much hyped in media.

The side effects on the stomach are similar between the substances unless you take the newer, so called COX-2 selective variants. They are prescription only.

The following are usally available over the counter (don't where you live, there might be variances in availability):

Ibuprofen (advil, ibuprox, nuprin etc)
Naproxen (Aleve)
Diclofenac (Voltaren)
Aspirin

But, don't take my advice, I am NOT a doctor. Go to yours if you are uncertain.

[SystemicAnomaly]

Altho' not a medicine in the conventional sense, one of the best anti-inflammatories with minimal side effects is ice. Fish (and fish oil), especially salmon & sardines, also provide excellent anti-inflammatory effects. Other omega-3 sources such as ground flax seeds and walnuts will have some benefit as well.

There are also a number of other foods and spices/herbs that aid in reducing inflammation. These include green tea, cherry juice, turmeric, ginger root, rosemary, tulsi (holy basil), hyssop, white willow bark, boswellia, arnica, and cayenne. You can find some effective products that contain many of these ingredients. D-Flame (from NOW) and Inflama-Rest (Source Naturals) are 2 such products. For more info about anti-inflammatory foods and spice/herbs check out the following post (be sure to look at both badminton links provided there):

tt.tennis-warehouse.com/showthread.php?p=1938114

[andreh]

Originally Posted by SystemicAnomaly

Altho' not a medicine in the conventional sense, one of the best anti-inflammatories with minimal side effects is ice. Fish (and fish oil), especially salmon & sardines, also provide excellent anti-inflammatory effects. Other omega-3 sources such as ground flax seeds and walnuts will have some benefit as well.

There are also a number of other foods and spices/herbs that aid in reducing inflammation. These include green tea, cherry juice, turmeric, ginger root, rosemary, tulsi (holy basil), hyssop, white willow bark, boswellia, arnica, and cayenne. You can find some effective products that contain many of these ingredients. D-Flame (from NOW) and Inflama-Rest (Source Naturals) are 2 such products. For more info about anti-inflammatory foods and spice/herbs check out the following post (be sure to look at both badminton links provided there):

tt.tennis-warehouse.com/showthread.php?p=1938114

This is an excellent point. There is also a case to be made for vitamin-e supplements. Although perhaps more as a preventive measure than as an acute treatment for injuries.

[chess9]

Originally Posted by SystemicAnomaly

Altho' not a medicine in the conventional sense, one of the best anti-inflammatories with minimal side effects is ice. Fish (and fish oil), especially salmon & sardines, also provide excellent anti-inflammatory effects. Other omega-3 sources such as ground flax seeds and walnuts will have some benefit as well.

There are also a number of other foods and spices/herbs that aid in reducing inflammation. These include green tea, cherry juice, turmeric, ginger root, rosemary, tulsi (holy basil), hyssop, white willow bark, boswellia, arnica, and cayenne. You can find some effective products that contain many of these ingredients. D-Flame (from NOW) and Inflama-Rest (Source Naturals) are 2 such products. For more info about anti-inflammatory foods and spice/herbs check out the following post (be sure to look at both badminton links provided there):

tt.tennis-warehouse.com/showthread.php?p=1938114

Yes to the Omega 3's. I take about 5g of fish oil each day and I'd say for the most part (except for falling and hurting my back/hip) I am free of pain. The DMSO does appear to be helping as well. I don't take much ibuprofen because of my fear of intestinal issues. I take one 18mg tab of aspirin each day as well, per my doctor.

-Robert

[Andres]

Anti-depressants,
Controlling tools of your system
Making life more tolerable
making life more tolerable

Serj Tankian

[Fedace]

Originally Posted by BigEleven

I have been avoiding anti-inflam. medicine because of the side effects and the extra burden they put on some of the organs. But now I have inflammation in my foot and I have pains in my knees, wrist, and shoulder. So what will be a good choice of anti-inflam. medicine?

Go ahead and try the Celebrex if not done so already. you need a script from your doctor. It has less side effects than traditional over the counter ones like Motrin. there was report earlier last year about its use and link to strokes and so on but if you are using this short term, it is not a problem. Studies involved mostly long term users. and most doctors feel that this risks exists with all anti-inflammatories anyway. But go ahead and ask your doctor and see what he thinks about it as well. IF he feels that it is safe for you, then he will give you a script for it.

[Cindysphinx]

I'm not a doctor, so keep that in mind. I'm just passing along what my doctors have told me.

If I were having a problem with inflammation and wasn't getting relief with ice, I would try Ibuprofen first. I would take 3-4 tablets on day one, with food and a lot of water. Ibuprofen used to be a prescription med, and the prescription dose for use as an anti-inflammatory was 4 tablets three times daily. That's a lot. I would just take the full dose once and see if that is enough.

The OTC dose is 1-2 tablets, which will help with pain but won't give a significant anti-inflammatory benefit. I have also found that a smaller dose of Ibuprofen *before* exercise does more good than a larger dose afterward.

I suspect that if you go to a doctor, the first thing she will ask is whether you have tried Ibuprofen etc. Might as well try it so that you will have some useful information to provide.

I have also done Celebrex for 2-3 week stretches, usually along with a course of PT. It worked for that, but you have to take it many days before you reach peak benefit. You can't take it right before a match and expect it to do anything. Celebrex was the least effective NSAID I have used.

I've also done Aleve, but Ibuprofen seems to work faster and better for me. YMMV.

I also had a course of Nabumetone for an episode of plantar fasciitis. My doctor wanted me to use an NSAID for 2-3 weeks, but I would never be able to do that because it would be too hard on my stomach. So he prescribed Nabumetone instead. Man, that Nabumetone was wonderful! No stomach upset, helped a lot.

These days, I don't have to take anything. Yippee!!

[SystemicAnomaly]

Originally Posted by Cindysphinx

...

If I were having a problem with inflammation and wasn't getting relief with ice, I would try Ibuprofen first. I would take 3-4 tablets on day one, with food and a lot of water. Ibuprofen used to be a prescription med, and the prescription dose for use as an anti-inflammatory was 4 tablets three times daily. That's a lot. I would just take the full dose once and see if that is enough.

...

To get the anti-inflammatory effect from ibuprofen, I believe that you need to take 600 to 800 mg 3 or 4 times a day. Not sure if you will receive any significant inflammation relief from 1 prescription dose per diem. I believe the same thing applies to other NSAIDs -- 1.5 to 2x of the normal dosage taken several times a day. These high doses should probably not be continued past 10 days straight unless directed by a physician.

If you do decide to use any NSAIDs, including Celebrex, to manage inflammation, I would urge you to consider using the foods and COX-2 inhibiting spices/herbs or herbal products that I mentioned previously after the 1st 10 days. No reason that you cannot also use them concurrently with the NSAIDs that I am aware of.

[El Diablo]

Whenever a drug becomes "over the counter" the dose is halved to make it more "idiot proof." Ibuprofen in the 1970s was a prescription drug with a recommended dose of 800 mg. every 6 hours as needed.

[Cindysphinx]

Originally Posted by SystemicAnomaly

To get the anti-inflammatory effect from ibuprofen, I believe that you need to take 600 to 800 mg 3 or 4 times a day. Not sure if you will receive any significant inflammation relief from 1 prescription dose per diem.

In my personal experience, one blast can and does work. It depends on the extent of the problem (obviously!). I've never heard 4x a day recommended; I was always told 3x.

My personal limit for Ibuprofen is 4 tablets 2x a day. And it needs to be a pretty bad problem for me even to do that. I find I can cut down the dose by augmenting the drugs with icing and by taking it before things get out of hand.

[SystemicAnomaly]

Originally Posted by Cindysphinx

In my personal experience, one blast can and does work. It depends on the extent of the problem (obviously!). I've never heard 4x a day recommended; I was always told 3x.

My personal limit for Ibuprofen is 4 tablets 2x a day. And it needs to be a pretty bad problem for me even to do that. I find I can cut down the dose by augmenting the drugs with icing and by taking it before things get out of hand.

Best to check with a pharmacist or physician before using high doses of NSAIDs.

The single blast (of 600 or 800 mg) of IB may work very well for pain management but will probably only have a minor or, at best, modest effect on inflammation according to quite a few sources. In lower OTC doses, IB acts as an analgesic. To derive a significant anti-inflammatory effect, I believe that a minimum of 1800 mg (in 3 doses) per day is required (or recommended). The maximum daily prescription dosage for adults under 60 is 3200 mg per day (4x800 mg).

Even when used as an analgesic (for pain management) in 200 or 400 mg doses, either 3 or 4 doses are allowed. In the past, I have been given prescription IB twice -- one was for 600 mg doses and the other was for 800 mg doses. Both the doctors and the pharmacists indicated that either 3 or 4 doses daily for 10 days was suggested.

Again, check with your pharmacist (or physician) for anti-inflammatory daily doses.

I would suggest that those wishing to minimize inflammation with IB (or other NSAID) should use the minimum daily dosage suggested by your doctor or pharmacist -- probably 1800 mg. Complement this with ice and the anti-inflammatory foods/spices that I suggested. If inflammation is still suspected after 7-10 days then consider using one or both of the COX-2 inhibitor products that I suggested previously.

You might also want to look into using an ibuprofen cream to deliver more ibuprofen into your system without going thru your stomach and intestines. I would think that this would somewhat diminish the stress to those organs.

One more time... check with your pharmacist (or physician) for anti-inflammatory daily doses.

[SystemicAnomaly]

I came across the following PubMed article on an evaluation of Ibuprofen cream from the National Institutes of Health and the National Center for Biotechnology Information:

NCBI.nlm.NIH.gov/pubmed/7804585

I can attest to the effectiveness of ibuprofen cream that I had imported from Germany some years back. However, I do not know if the IB creams that are currently available thru US sources are as effective -- perhaps they are.

[rasajadad]

Ice.
Ten char.

[Cindysphinx]

Originally Posted by SystemicAnomaly

Best to check with a pharmacist or physician before using high doses of NSAIDs.

The single blast (of 600 or 800 mg) of IB may work very well for pain management but will probably only have a minor or, at best, modest effect on inflammation according to quite a few sources. In lower OTC doses, IB acts as an analgesic. To derive a significant anti-inflammatory effect, I believe that a minimum of 1800 mg (in 3 doses) per day is required (or recommended). The maximum daily prescription dosage for adults under 60 is 3200 mg per day (4x800 mg).

Even when used as an analgesic (for pain management) in 200 or 400 mg doses, either 3 or 4 doses are allowed. In the past, I have been given prescription IB twice -- one was for 600 mg doses and the other was for 800 mg doses. Both the doctors and the pharmacists indicated that either 3 or 4 doses daily for 10 days was suggested.

Again, check with your pharmacist (or physician) for anti-inflammatory daily doses.

I would suggest that those wishing to minimize inflammation with IB (or other NSAID) should use the minimum daily dosage suggested by your doctor or pharmacist -- probably 1800 mg. Complement this with ice and the anti-inflammatory foods/spices that I suggested. If inflammation is still suspected after 7-10 days then consider using one or both of the COX-2 inhibitor products that I suggested previously.

You might also want to look into using an ibuprofen cream to deliver more ibuprofen into your system without going thru your stomach and intestines. I would think that this would somewhat diminish the stress to those organs.

One more time... check with your pharmacist (or physician) for anti-inflammatory daily doses.

I stand corrected. Your post reminds me that my doc told me 4 tablets 3x a day. When that stopped being effective, I called and asked him if I could take more (having read on the internet that I could dose 4x a day). He said the max dosage was higher, but the benefits of adding another dose *for me* didn't justify the risk. We had hit the wall. I had surgery instead.

But yes, the max dose is what is described above.

And yes, if you get to the point where you are thinking about taking 12-16 Advil a day, you are way past the point where you should have seen a doctor.

I do think doing a single blast of 4 tablets 1x a day is a good way to see if you're going to get any anti-inflammatory benefit though. For instance, if I am having shoulder trouble, I will take one blast before a match. The next day, my shoulder will feel fine, no inflammation. I don't take an additional two doses because they are not necessary. That's my own personal experience and what got me through meniscus injury, shoulder injury and plantar fasciitis.

[Serve em Up]

I had a horrible case of shin splints. I had been taking Ibuprofen according to the label. My doctor told me I wasn't taking near enough. So he put me on 4 200mg tablets three times daily. That didn't work, so he put me on Celebrex for 10 days. Worked like a charm.