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Quoted message said:Quoted message said:If I came to you with this problem would you tell me to just stop running and maybe an NSAID and
nothing else?
Quoted message said:No! Not at all! That would be cruel. I am not a big believer in
NSAIDs in
Quoted message said:the first place. They are great pain pills, and they are
antiinflammatory in
Quoted message said:theory in a test tube, but whether they contribute to wound healing
is still
Quoted message said:a matter of debate. I would certainly meet your pain needs, but I
would not
Quoted message said:necessarily force an NSAID upon you if you were feeling ok or didn't
want
Quoted message said:one. And I certainly wouldn't use a wastefully expensive one when
cheap
Quoted message said:generic and very powerful Ibuprofen would do.
OK, I'd love it if anybody could clarify inflammation theory for me.
Several times now, for several different things, I have had doctors offer me prescription
anti-inflammatory meds. Generally, I am resistant, and the conversation usually goes like this:
Me: will this promote healing, or will it just make me feel better?
Doc: it reduces inflammation
Mf: will it reduce the overall time it takes until it is really healed?
Doc: it reduces inflammation.
Mg: ok, if it feels better and I go running, am I doing harm? In short, am I masking pain?
Doc: NSAIDs don't mask pain. They reduce inflammation.
Mh: can I just take some Ibuprofen instead? (cheaper, and doesn't have "death" listed as a side
effect on the package insert)
Doc: the prescription is better
Mi: why
Doc: more powerful, longer lasting.
Mj: I prefer shorter lasting – I'd rather just take something when I max out my pain threshold.
Short of that, I feel that pain is usually bearable and has the benefit of keeping me from doing
stupid things (a real likelihood).
Doc: longer lasting is better. You'd have to take Ibuprofen every 4 hours to get the same effect.
Mk: and, besides pain management, what is that effect?
Doc: it reduces inflammation.
Ml: and why is inflammation bad?
Doc: it causes pain.
Mm: does the presence of inflammation or pain change the rate of healing?
. . . ad nauseam . . .
(I've also had non-doctors explain to me that there is an escalating cycle between friction /
irritation and inflammation and pain, such that by reducing the inflammation, friction is reduced,
and thus no new inflammation is caused from the friction from the inflammation. In short, the
presence of inflammation causes more inflammation. This makes an iota of sense, and would support
the healing properties of reducing inflammation, but I'm not sure if it's based in science.)
- wsr