Posted on 09/08/2010 10:36:31 PM PDT by neverdem
When I strained a back muscle playing tennis not long ago, my doubles partner, who happened to be a doctor, pulled a tube of cream from her gym bag and told me to rub it on.
It wasn’t Bengay or one of those instant ice gels. It was a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug, like Advil or Motrin, in a cream applied to the skin. She raved about the stuff, which she buys over the counter when she goes to Europe, and lamented that it is so hard to find in the United States.
In fact, Europeans have long been able to buy nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, or Nsaids (pronounced EN-seds), in gels, creams, sprays and patches to ease muscle and joint pain more directly than a pill. But in the United States, the first of these topical Nsaids was approved just three years ago, for prescription use only, with a “black box” insert warning of side effects.
“I slap it on as soon as I get an injury,” said R. Andrew Moore, a pain researcher at the University of Oxford in England who was an author of a recent analysis of studies on the use of topical Nsaids for acute injuries like sprains and strains. (Dr. Moore has received research financing from and has consulted for drug companies in the past.)
At first, he said, the researchers were skeptical of the drugs. Older studies had been poorly designed or too brief, and there has been little evidence of effectiveness for other types of medicated creams or those containing the chili pepper component capsaicin.
But a number of new controlled trials and meta-analyses like Dr. Moore’s suggest that topical Nsaids are as effective as their oral counterparts for treating osteoarthritis in the knee and hand as well as musculoskeletal injuries like soreness and...
(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...
I do think the capsaicin patches work and everyone I’ve recommended them to still uses them.
Not a brain surgeon but I know that there are some bad side effects for Nsaids in the digestive tract and having patches would bypass that.
There’s also a cream called “Topricin” that seems to work pretty well.. I’ve seen it sold at Sprouts and it can also be purchased online.
I didn’t know about this. I want some. It would bypass the digestive tract route and be much less harmful to the liver.
I’ve been using the SalonPas ~ I’m sure you’ve heard them advertised on the radio.
They are little patches, much like the large patches you slap on for injuries, but they’re small, have little odor to them and the active ingredient is aspirin.
The box I bought had 2 green packs and each pack when opened had 10 pads in it. I usually get relief within just a few minutes that lasts a long while.
I’ve been using Voltaren. It is a nsaid cream, and helps with some pretty bad pain I have left over from car accidents.
It can do all the nasty things nsaids that you swallow do, so I am cautious with it. But it does help.
You can get opium for the treatment of diarrhea in Thailand ~
We use a almost pure form of DMSO at work an some of the older guys take aspirin an crush it into powder form an make a paste with it....my take on it is a stronger form of aspercream the OTC brand....
They us it on painful joints etc....works great.
Check with your local vitamin shops, some are licensed to compound NSAID’s. If in South Florida, Barry’S Vit World in Boca Raton has been making it for years.
Have you checked out Qutenza?
It is a new form of capsaicin patch that requires only one treatment every three months.
Must not be much of a doctor. Mine gives me a prescription for compounded ibuprofen cream that I get filled at a local pharmacy but otherwise ibuprofen cream is easily available just about anywhere and opportunities to get it can easily be found on any search engine.
Don't know about anybody else but it sure works for me on local aches and pains.
Know someone who uses salonpas and swears by it. Can’t say I’ve used it myself, but I’ve heard great things....
“You can get opium for the treatment of diarrhea in Thailand”
The whole country must be lit up like a Christmas tree.
Not to mention they are all now constipated....
http://www.rxlist.com/voltaren-gel-drug.htm
Voltaren can still cause gastrointestinal problems, which is related more to how it works than where it works. Especially with some cases of arthritis, it can be used along with oral NSAIDs, but it can have a cumulative effect with them, so must be in measured doses. This is why it has plastic measuring strips with it.
Tried that, swelled up my ankles like I had sprained them, and tore up my gastro system. This after just 3 days.
No, I’ve never heard of it before but just the regular capsaicin will have a residual, Thanks, I will have to check it out.
Y’all should check out some Magnesium Chloride (oil) spray for topical pain relief. It helps nearly instantly and the benefits of adding the magnesium (which you are most likely woefully deficient in) can’t hurt.
My doc prescribed Voltaren Gel, an NSAID gell, for my knees. It doesn't cure anything, and now i've had both of them replaced. But it does give relief. It's "approved" for use on hands, wrists, ankles, knees and feet. Works great on carpal tunnel, at least in the early stages. It never upset my stomach, caused a rash or anthing like that. Was thinking of putting some on a "knot" in my upper glut, probably due to my knee replacement. Physical therapist put some "BioFreeze" on it, and said that if it works, she can give me some sample packets for use until I can get a tube of it.
I've purchased it cheap on Ebay and it works for me.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.