MEDIA STATEMENT

23rd January 2008

Response to The Cochrane Library review ‘Non-Steroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drugs for Low Back Pain’

The International Ibuprofen Foundation is aware of the review of studies which was published in the Cochrane Library today comparing the efficacy of various analgesics for ‘non-specific’ low back pain, i.e. pain not resulting from sciatica.

Clinical trials have shown that ibuprofen, at over-the-counter (OTC) doses* (400mg three times daily), relieves pain, muscle spasm and tenderness, and reduces the restriction on movement associated with lower back pain(1). In addition, a large-scale study which directly compared aspirin, ibuprofen and paracetamol showed the overall tolerability of ibuprofen to be equivalent to that of paracetamol, and better than that of aspirin(2).

Nick Henderson, Executive Director International Ibuprofen Foundation comments, “OTC ibuprofen has a long history of use as a safe and effective medicine and is used by millions of people around the world every day. Unlike simple analgesics, such as paracetamol, ibuprofen combines pain-relieving effects with proven anti-inflammatory, so it is particularly suitable for relieving the inflammation associated with backache(3).”

There is no clinical evidence to suggest that consumers need to be concerned about their safety when taking non-prescription ibuprofen products4. Clinical data have shown that OTC ibuprofen provides the ideal combination of efficacy and tolerability compared to other analgesics for the vast majority of people when taken as directed on the patient leaflet. A doctor, nurse prescriber or pharmacist should be consulted if in any doubt.


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*The OTC dose of ibuprofen is a maximum of 1,200mg per day for up to 10 days

References:
1 Hosie GAC. Br J Clin Res, 1993; 4:5-17
2 Moore N, et al. Clin Drug Invest 1999; 18(2):89-98
3 Dollery C. Therapeutic Drugs 2nd Edition, 1999 pp1-3
4 Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine Supplement No. 48, 2007 (published December 2007)

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