It seems like there’s a bit of misinformation going around, so hopefully I can clear things up a little if y’all don’t mind. To preface, I’m a medical assistant! I have spent… far too many hours of my life on this kind of stuff.
Joediaper said:
All NSAID's are in this category. Acetaminophen (Tylenol), naproxen sodium (Aleve) and ibuprofen (Advil and Motrin). They can be extremely dangerous when taken in even small doses for extended periods.
First off, just a quick disclaimer- acetaminophen isn’t an NSAID, just a pain reliever! That’s why you can take Ibuprofen and Acetaminophen in rotation.
Diclofenac is actually also an NSAID, though it’s usually taken topically instead of orally. Topical medications tend to have a bit of a lower risk for ADR’s, and in some cases don’t even necessarily go systemic.
A quick explanation of ADR’s as well… ADR’s (adverse reactions)- sometimes, people experience negative side effects from a drug, which we call an adverse reaction (it may also be labeled as a drug allergy, but adr’s vs drug allergies is a whooooole semantic debate that I’m not here to settle). Sometimes when someone has an adverse reaction to a drug it’s just to that drug; other times, it’s to all drugs in that category. What Teddy described earlier…
Teddy02 said:
Please, please do not take too many ibuprofen … I did this some years ago and it gave me tinnitus. This is a horrible drug that I think is overrated.
…Is an ADR to ibuprofen. Since they’re using diclofenac topical gel with no problems though, we can tell they don’t have an allergy to
all NSAIDs.
Sometimes, though, the allergy does pertain to the whole category, which affects what you can and can’t use. The reaction you have will affect what a doctor is willing to prescribe you as well. For example, Teddy’s reaction to ibuprofen had been something like anaphylaxis, their doctor would likely make sure they never went near diclofenac for any reason whatsoever. But a reaction of tinnitus is not only pretty mild, but also unlikely to occur with a topical gel.
Medication risks and effectiveness are also affected by your health conditions and any other medications you’re on. For example, NSAIDs like ibuprofen can act affect your clotting rate, while some painkillers such as aspirin are straight blood thinners. So if you have any conditions that would make blood thinners risky, or if you’re already
on a heavy duty anticoagulant such Warfarin or Eliquis, your doctor might instruct you to steer clear of those.
And a lot of different medications can interact with each other! For example, NSAIDs have noted interactions with corticosteroids, beta blockers, and diuretics, among others. But these interactions and the risks they pose depend on what dosage you’re taking of each, for how long you need to take them,
how you’re taking them (oral/topical/etc), other medications you’re taking, any prior adr’s, your medical history, etc. All of those factors are weighed by your doctor when they decide what medications to recommend!
All this is to say: everyone is different.
Just because you personally had an adverse reaction to a medication, or it would be unsafe for you personally to use, does not make it an inherently bad or dangerous medication!
PLEASE talk to your doctor before making any decisions or judgements on your medications. What works for you might be dangerous for someone else, and something you’ve had bad experiences with may be life-saving to others!
(P.S… This is also why it’s really important to give a complete and accurate medical history/medication list when asked to by a healthcare professional! We ask for a reason. 😉)
