Forty years of ibuprofen use
Abstract
Low-dose ibuprofen is as effective as aspirin and paracetamol for the indications normally treated with over-the-counter (OTC) medications and is associated with the lowest risk of gastrointestinal toxicity of any non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug. By contrast, even low-dose aspirin is associated with an appreciable risk of gastrointestinal toxicity. Paracetamol is well tolerated and effective in treating mild to moderate pain but there is growing concern about a possible risk of gastrointestinal toxicity and a possible link with asthma in children. The PAIN (Paracetamol, Aspirin, Ibuprofen New tolerability) study was a blinded randomised comparison of the tolerability of OTC analgesics in the treatment of common types of acute pain encountered in the community. A total of 8,677 adults were randomised to treatment with ibuprofen 1200 mg/day, paracetamol 3 g/day or aspirin 3 g/day for 1-7 days. The most common indications for treatment were musculoskeletal conditions (31-33%), colds or flu (19-20%), backache (15-17%), sore throat (11-12%) and headache (10-11%). Significant adverse events were more common with aspirin (10.1%) than ibuprofen (7.0%) (P<0.001) or paracetamol (7.8%). Significant gastrointestinal events were less frequent with ibuprofen (4.0%) than with aspirin (7.1%, P<0.001) or paracetamol (5.3%) (P=0.025). For every 100 patients treated, five more will experience significant adverse events if they are taking aspirin rather than ibuprofen, and four more than…
How strong is the evidence?
Evidence Hub reads this as a randomized trial, done in people. Its evidence level is 2 of 5 (High · randomized trial). Randomized trials of a reasonable size are the strongest single-study design. Reported size: 8,677 participants or records.
Read the paper
Related studies
- Effect of dexamethasone as an analgesic adjuvant to multimodal pain treatment after total knee arthroplasty: randomised clinical trial
- Effect of a Postoperative Multimodal Opioid-Sparing Protocol vs Standard Opioid Prescribing on Postoperative Opioid Consumption After Knee or Shoulder Arthroscopy: A Randomized Clinical Trial
- Comparison of the Post-Caesarean Analgesic Effect of Adding Dexmedetomidine to Paracetamol and Ketorolac: A Randomized Clinical Trial
- A triple-blind randomized clinical trial of different associations between dexamethasone and non-steroids anti-inflammatories for preemptive action in third molar extractions
- An open label randomized clinical trial of Indomethacin for mild and moderate hospitalised Covid-19 patients
- Oral paracetamol and/or ibuprofen for treating pain after soft tissue injuries: Single centre double-blind, randomised controlled clinical trial
Go deeper in Evidence Hub
Evidence Hub adds a study data sheet (design, sample size, evidence level, key numbers), an AI summary and a chat grounded in the paper's text.