Aspirin, paracetamol, ibuprofen: how to choose?

Aspirin, paracetamol, and ibuprofen are the three most common types of over-the-counter pain relievers used to treat pain, fever, and headache. Which is more effective? What type of pain should you take them for? Can we associate them?

Headache, fever, cold, flu-like illness, pains dental, body aches… The analgesics are among the best-selling drugs in self-medication. However, they are not harmless and some are even downright dangerous in too high a dose or misused. Whichever drug you choose, the first rule is not to exceed three to five days of treatment. If the pain persists, consult your doctor.

In 1er choice: paracetamol

The paracetamol (Doliprane, Dafalgan, Efferalgan …) presents the best benefit / risk for pains common (headache, fever, dental pain …), and for a dosage less than 3 g per day, i.e. three 1000 mg tablets spaced every four to six hours. However, it is toxic to liver ; at high doses (greater than 10 g / day), paracetamol is even potentially deadly. In addition, its association withalcohol is strongly discouraged.

2e choice: ibuprofen

Theibuprofen (Antaréne, Advil, Nurofen, Spedifen …) is interesting especially for rheumatic pains,osteoarthritis, tendonitis, low back pain, sciatica, because it has an action anti-inflammatory which does not exist with paracetamol. However, it is not recommended for dental pain because it can mask a potential infection. The daily dose should not exceed 800 mg per day and the doses should be spaced six hours apart. Ibuprofen however has undesirable effects, in particular intestinal disorders (nausea, burns ofstomach, or even ulcers) and it is not recommended for patients withrenal failure and in the elderly.

3e choice: aspirin

Commonly used to treat fever or pain,aspirin (Aspégic, Aspro …) is however to be prohibited for these indications, according to 60 million consumers. This drug indeed presents significant risks of haemorrhages even at reduced dosage due to its anticoagulant action. For the same reason, it should not be taken during menstruation and it is not recommended in case of colds or viral infection. On the other hand, it is interesting at low doses in the prevention cardiovascular disorders.

Can we combine aspirin and ibuprofen or paracetamol?

Theaspirin and ibuprofen are both in the class of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), so do not combine them to avoid overdose. On the other hand, ibuprofen and paracetamol can be combined for acute pain (alternating every three to four hours), which strengthens their mutual effectiveness and therefore makes it possible to reduce the total dose. However, the maximum thresholds for each must be respected.

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