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There is no such thing as an anti-inflammatory that ISN'T an NSAID, is there?


AimeeM
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My OBGYN had told me to stop aspirin products (Excedrin taken occasionally) prior to my surgery, but had told me that I could continue my ibuprofen (my life line!). Today, at the pre-op (at the hospital), however, the pre-op nurse told me that I had to stop my ibuprofen (and other NSAIDS) - which I take regularly for my knees and for pain related to what I'm having surgery for. Ibuprofen very literally is what makes me able to stand most days.

 

I called my OBGYN, but I'm not sure that there's anything to do. My knees will swell without the ibuprofen, the pelvic pain will be terrible, and I still have a week before my surgery. The nurse did say I could take tylenol, but acknowledged that it would do little, or nothing, for inflammation and pain related to inflammation.

 

This is more of a vent than anything. Ibuprofen is my friend :P

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To answer your question, steroids (i.e. Prednisone) are anti-inflammatories that are not NSAIDS.  Obviously steroids carry their own risks and benefits so although they are the answer to your question they may not be the therapeutic solution to your problem.  You would need to discuss that with your doctor.  Good luck!

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Call the surgeons office and ask them what your options are.

 

The problem with NSAIDs is that there is a bleeding risk with them. They don't want you to have anything that can increase your chance of bleeding issues before or immediately after the surgery.  The standard may be a week prior, but you may be able to  decrease that window with permission from the doctor actually doing the surgery. 

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Well, there are steroids.  (NSAIDs are the alternatives to steroids, the NS part standing for non-steroids.)  You could ask if you can be prescribed those or not.

 

Curcumin is the active ingredient in tumuric and is a natural anti-inflammatory.  It helps me with some kinds of inflammation but not others.

 

What Jean said! Aimee, it will be good to get off the ibuprofen. It is not your friend; it stresses your liver. If you have knee pain, check into potent formulas of turmeric and perhaps talk to an ortho after you get done with this surgery.

 

"Optimal Turmeric" by Seeking Health is just one option. There are many more.

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As far I know, there are no other options that are over the counter.

 

I am allergic to aspirin, Advil, and all of the NSAIDs. The time I used them many years ago made we wheeze and have a hard time breathing. No doctor thinks me taking them is a good idea. But I workout and have serious muscle pain. I would love to take something. But there is nothing that my doctor could come up with for muscle soreness that would work for me.

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You could ask about Tramadol.  Staying off NSAIDS before surgery is a requirement.  Too high of a bleeding risk, and we really hate not being able to control surgical and post-surgical bleeding. A lot of doctors will tell you no NSAIDS for two weeks prior to surgery.

 

Ibuprofen is processed through the kidneys, not the liver, and liver damage is not a side effect of Ibuprofen usage.  It can cause kidney issues, however.

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You could try turmeric, drinking lots of cold water, avoiding sugar, and cryotherapy - both icing at home with a knee ice wrap (at least 10 minutes every hour) and a whole body cryotherapy chamber if there is a place near you that offers this treatment.  It's kind of cool (no pun intended), you stand in a chamber and they pump cold nitrogen gas at you for 2-3 minutes.  Athletes do it to help speed recovery.  My son has done it and it was very helpful for him.

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Call your dr. Depending on the severity of  your pain, sometimes they will give you one of the milder narcotics. 

 

Plaquenil takes several weeks to build up in the body, so even if you were a good candidate generally, it's not a great anti-inflammatory for you now.

 

Tumeric/curcumin can act like a blood thinner, so you shouldn't take that either. Ginger, fish oil, etc. are all in the same category.

 

 

 

 

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Please do not substitute herbs in this case (says the trained herbalist). Turmeric may or may not increase bleeding risk, but ginger most definitely does. Both are awesome for inflammation, but this is a specific side-effect avoidance and they are not going to help with that.

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Thanks ladies! I'll stay away from the herbs, since they are in a similar category as a blood thinner.

The nurse did suggest tylenol, but it does nothing for the inflammation (and that is a significant contributor to my pain, if not all of it).

The nurse also suggested asking for narcotics, but I'm not comfortable being on them while alone with the children - what happens if I need to take them somewhere? KWIM? I have a lot of running around to do before the surgery. After the surgery, I know I'll be on narcotics for a bit (as per my surgeon), BUT Tony hired someone to stay with me for several weeks, so the risk of "what if" isn't as much a concern. 

I guess I'll just need to suck it up and rotate heat and ice for the next week :P

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