Ibuprofen question

[Ian Duggan]

Yeah, I know this is kinda the wrong forum for that, and I'm sorry, but this is vaguely time sensitive and I'm hoping somebody in the know will see this soonish.

Will Ibuprofen improve my squat?

Nah, I'm kidding. I've got some pretty major swelling going on right now from a tooth abscess that is driving me nuts (hence awake at 3:20am). Taking Ibuprofen helps for about 90 mins, then the swelling comes back and I'm stuck with it until I can take more 4 hours later.

Anybody know if taking 400mgs every 2 hours is pushing it a little bit? I think I've been told to do this by a doctor in the past, but I'm not 100% sure. In fact I think I've been prescribed 600mgs or more, but it was a while ago.

It would be VERY short term, like today and tomorrow, or until it goes down by itself (which my dentist has told me it will do by phone) but basically I can't get to a dentist or doctor till Tuesday and if I have to go through this crap for another 36 hours I'm going to go bannanas.

Any thoughts / idea of risks?

Thanks guys.

[Brian_Worden]

I am by NO MEANS A QUALIFIED MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL... but I think you can take up to a 800mg dose every 6 hours. (not exceeding 2400mg in a 24 hour period)

I really hate giving medication advice... but i don't see where taking a 800mg dose then another 6 hours later would be detrimental.

Make sure you have a little food in your stomach while taking 600mg+.

Hopefully someone here can verify this?

BTW have you taken large doses of ibuprofen in the past? Are you currently on any other meds?

[Ian Duggan]

BTW have you taken large doses of ibuprofen in the past? Are you currently on any other meds?
Yes, for RSI and no I'm on nothing.

Thanks for the input man, I'm really looking for a general idea, so your thoughts are greatly appreciated.

[Brian_Worden]

Personally...
instead of taking 200mg every two hours... i'd take 600mg or 800mg every 6 six hours.
Until you can call a pharmacist in the morning.

Good luck my friend!

[Ian Duggan]

Thanks Brian, appreciate it.

[Jonathan Macfarlane]

Seeing as you've had my serious advice already.

Take it till you urinate blood. Then slow down on the dosages a bit cause you've pickled your kidneys.

[Paul Neuhaus]

I've been prescribed 800mg before. Taking it for only 1 or 2 days shouldn't be a problem. It's long-term use that usually causes problems, from what I understand.

[Dennis Ruygrok]

In terms of possible overdosing....lemme put it to you this way, last August ('07) when my appendix ruptured and I thought it was just REALLY bad food poisoning, I took roughly 24-30 ibuprofen in around 18 hours and believe me, the only thing it did was made me a little bit constipated.
As for your dosages.....You will be fine.

[WesleyInman]

If you crush the ibuprofen in a spoon and smash it up, mix in a tiny bit of water and make it into a paste, you can apply it to the abcess and it will work similar to lidocaine, so thereby making a spot application more effective!! And yes, my dentist taught me this, for those who will challenge or question this idea!

[Dan Montague]

A typical dose for injuries is 800mg 4/day for 10 days.

I've been on copious amounts of ibuprofen before, for extended periods of time and had blood panel work done out of curiosity.

I think it's worth noting that a lot of the harsh liver effects are a bit exaggerated for the average guy. A blitz of high-doses for a short period of time isn't too much to ask for the body.

[Ann Collins]

Maximum dose is 3200 mg per day. Takes 3 days to reach therapeutic blood level of anti-inflammatory. Our ortho surgeons rec. taking it for 10-14 days for it to have it's full effect.

[Nikhil Rao]

we're not worried about liver with ibuprofen (that's tylenol). With Ibu the big thing is stomach (long term) and kidney (short and long term).

Boost your dosage to 800 every 6 hours. If you NEED more no it won't kill you and probably won't hurt given the massive safety margins we build in. But do so at your own risk. I am not a medical professional for another 8 months so this does not constitute medical advice.

[Ian Duggan]

Thanks guys, this is all really good to know.

Don't worry, none of your names will be appearing in the lawsuit if anything goes wrong.

Well, just Brouse 'cause his advice came first and Nik 'cause he's too damn smart and it p***es me off...

:D

[RyanWilson]

Had a wonderful abcess myself, ibu did NOTHING for me until I got on antibiotics. Was taking 1000mg 3x/day, sometimes a few extra in between doses, slathering my bum tooth with Orajel...nothing. Either get that sucker drilled ASAP at your own risk (my dentist said that until the infection was under control, they couldn't numb me properly for the root canal), or get on something to squash the infection immediately if you don't want to suffer. Once I was on antibiotics, I was back to normal in 2 days, and tomorrow I get the first of my 3 wonderful drilling appointments to ensure that I don't go through this again. Best of luck with taking care of it!

[Ian Duggan]

Just spoken to my dentist who will see me tomorrow. He told me to... put a tea bag between my gum and cheek around the infected area. I'll be damned if that's not working a treat. Odd.

And Ryan, you're 100% right - ibuprofen, even in large quantities is doing next to nothing. I had one of these suckers about 4 years ago and my then dentist, without really explaining to me what he was about to do, drilled the tooth to drain it without any proper anaesthetic. Hooooeee, did that wake me up.

This abscess is caused, ironically, by a botched filling by another dentist. X-rays from a few months back showed there was a gap between the filling and the bottom of my tooth, and my dentist said he was pretty sure it would get infected.

Hope your repair works tomorrow go OK.

[Joshua Davis]

I've taken at the most 1gm 4 times in a day for 2-3 days at a stretch before my shoulder was operated on.

Nothing adverse seemed to happen.

Of course I weighed 150-160kg at the time, so your mileage may vary.

[Jay O'Neill]

800 mg three times a day. Thats the dosage of choice. You can takeTylenol in between ibu doses. 2800 mg is the top that you dont want to exceed.
You need to get rid of the Infection so your dentist or your primary care provider can prescribe you antibiotcs.

[Scott Markowitz]

Just have a surgery, get prescribed some hydrocodone afterward, and hang on to it. Take 2 of those and even if it does still hurt, you won't care.

[Matt Brouse]

Rub some dirt on it and get back out there!