How good is topical ibuprofen (ie in cream)?!


Question: How good is topical ibuprofen (ie in cream)!?
A relative of mine used to take ibuprofen in tablet form for arthritis of the knees!. Recently she had to be admitted to hospital for a stomach ulcer, probably caused by the ibuprofen and made worse by the fact she doesn't eat much!. She is back at home now and refuses to go back to the hospital even as an out patient!. She doesn't take ibuprofen anymore but the paracetamol she takes does not seem to be tackling the pain!. There might be the option of adding in codiene to the paracetamol, but being a long time user of codiene (I have quite a few health issues:) I'm not sure this would be the best thing!.!. I suggested a GP visit but I'm not sure she will go!. The only other option I can think of is trying ibuprofen gel/cream hence my question!.Www@Answer-Health@Com


Answers:
I am afraid neither of your suggestions are going to help very much!.

Topical ibuprofen is of limited use as it only penetrates about 0!.5cms, this means it can't really reach the knee joint if you rub it in!.

Codeine is a poor analgesic, adding no more than 5% to the analgesic potency if taken with paracetamol!. Patients don't so much feel better on it, but fell worse without it, as the quickly experience withdrawal symptoms!.

I would ensure that your relative has a chat with her GP!.Www@Answer-Health@Com

I use ibuprofen gel on my neck when I get a tension headache - its about the only thing that works! The only other suggestions are taking glucosamine/chrondritin supplements or getting a specific arthritis painkiller from the doc!. Try the gel it wont hurt and it doesnt cost much!.Www@Answer-Health@Com

I dont understand why your relative is not on medication for arthritis!.!.!.if she has in fact been DIAGNOSED by her GP!? Topical ibuprofen will not help this kind of pain!.!.!.!.having personalised medication will!.!.!.!.Www@Answer-Health@Com

well you can tell her that paracetamol!.!. which i believe is acetemenophen here is BAD for you in the long term as it can cause liver problems and with codine!. might help the pain but won't help the inflammation from the Arthritis!.

The creme might help her as it can desolve into the joint and goes into the blood stream but bypasses the stomach!. She might like that and it might help!. I know a friend that uses ketroprofen cream which is similar and she absolutely loves it!.

I can understand the concerns over the stomach ulcer and this is an unfrotunate known side effect of antiinflmatories esp in their long term use!. Iburprofen is very potent!. Their are some lighter antinflamtories or NSAIDS that aren't as hard on the stomach but now that she has had an ulcer, she probbaky can't have any of them!.

The bad thing is that with Arthritis , depending on how bad it is, the pain comes from inflammation and as long as the inflammation is not under control, it will contunue to eat away and destroy the joint so it's best to consult a doctor as to what is the best move!. There are other treatments around depending on the form of Arthritis that she has and how bad it is!.

If she has Osteoarthritis, taking the supplement glucosamine/chondrotion is actually good because it does help prevent bone loss which was foind in research and taking fish oils does help because they have antiinflammatory properties in them but often not enough to really relieve the disease process!.

Taking the parecetamol with or without codeine isnt going to help the inflammation, damage and will likely lead to more damge to her organs as well as constipation (with the codine) so it isnt really a good med for the long term management of arthritis!.

The creme might really be a good thing for her to use for now though!. Hope it helpsWww@Answer-Health@Com





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