![]() For an average adult, that’s 600mg-800mg each dose.īut despite its research-demonstrated effectiveness in treating low back pain, not all patients can tolerate NSAIDs because of other medications they take. Patients typically underdose ibuprofen aim for approximately 10mg/kg every eight hours with food as needed for pain. ![]() So NSAIDs perform the best in treating acute low back pain in adults. Steroids – despite their powerful anti-inflammatory mechanism of action – also showed no benefit in multiple studies. However, they are associated with both long-term addiction and a high rate of return to the ER within 30 days compared to other treatments. Some doctors prescribe narcotics for moderate-to-severe acute low back pain. And prior studies found no benefit to adding narcotics or the muscle relaxer diazepam to NSAIDs. However, the addition of a muscle relaxer to ibuprofen did not generate improvement in low back pain symptoms or mobility, according to a 2019 study in Annals of Emergency Medicine. Treatment with NSAIDs in the ER performed better ibuprofen, ketorolac and diclofenac all proved effective in reducing low back pain in one randomized-control study. In fact, the study found that patients taking acetaminophen were four times more likely to have abnormal liver function tests, a possible side effect of long-term acetaminophen use. More useful knowledge: Are you at risk for a heart attack during your workout?Įveryone is talking about biotin: Here's what you need to know.Ī British Medical Journal meta-analysis of 13 studies including 5,400 patients found that acetaminophen was ineffective at reducing back pain. Multiple studies have looked at the effectiveness of treatment options for acute low back pain, including acetaminophen (Tylenol), nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) like ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin), narcotics (opioids) like oxycodone, and muscle relaxers, or a combination thereof. Typically, doctors look inside the medicine cabinet to treat acute lower back pain. How acute lower back pain is usually treated in the ER Such “red flags” include fever, major trauma, constant pain for more than six weeks, history of cancer, neurological deficits like numbness or weakness, night pain, or history of injection drug use. ![]() In fact, the American College of Emergency Physicians' “Choosing Wisely” campaign recommends against lumbar spine imaging in the ER for adults with non-traumatic low back pain unless more dangerous causes are suspected. Routine laboratory testing or imaging (X-ray, CT, MRI), while often expected by patients, is time- and resource-consuming and is unhelpful in our evaluation. Most patients with acute low back pain are discharged from the ER with a diagnosis of “nonspecific back pain” or “lumbago,” meaning their symptoms are due to musculoskeletal strain/spasm. One study showed that a whopping 84% of adults will suffer from low back pain at some point in their lives. ERs across the country see more than 2.6 million visits annually for low back pain. After a recent ER shift, I was thinking about how often patients turn up due to acute low back pain.
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