Skip to main navigation
Skip notifications
Access to POEMs and Essential Evidence Plus will no longer be included in CMA membership as of Dec. 1, 2023.
Search
Equivalent pain relief with different doses of ibuprofen
Clinical Question
In patients with acute pain, does a higher dose of ibuprofen produce greater pain relief?
Bottom line
Higher doses of ibuprofen for acute pain relief offer no more benefit at 60 minutes than a single 400-mg dose. The same has been shown for chronic treatment of osteoarthritis--an anti-inflammatory dose is not needed. Furthermore, another study showed equivalence between 200-mg and 400-mg dose. The same has been shown for chronic treatment of osteoarthritis--an anti-inflammatory dose is not needed. Furthermore, another study showed equivalence between 200-mg and 400-mg doses of ibuprofen. 2b
Reference
Study design: Randomized controlled trial (double-blinded)
Funding: Foundation
Setting: Emergency department
Synopsis
These authors enrolled 225 adults who presented to a single emergency department with an acute painful condition (~75% with musculoskeletal pain). The average pain score was between 6 and 7 on a scale of 1 to 10, with higher scores indicating higher pain. Using concealed allocation, patients were randomly assigned to receive a single dose of ibuprofen, either 400 mg, 600 mg, or 800 mg. Using intention-to-treat analysis, pain scores after 60 minutes dropped to 4.36 to 4.50 in all 3 groups. The study had 80% power to find a difference of at least 1.3 points, if it existed, among the groups.
Reviewer
Allen F. Shaughnessy, PharmD, MMedEd
Professor of Family Medicine
Tufts University
Boston, MA