Academic emergency medicine : official journal of the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Ibuprofen + acetaminophen versus ibuprofen alone for acute low back pain. An ED-based randomized study.
Patients with low back pain (LBP) are often treated with nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs). NSAIDs are modestly effective for LBP, but many patients with LBP continue to suffer despite treatment with these medications. We compared pain and functional outcomes 1 week after emergency department (ED) discharge among patients randomized to a 1-week course of ibuprofen plus acetaminophen versus ibuprofen plus placebo. ⋯ Among ED patients with acute, nontraumatic, nonradicular LBP, adding acetaminophen to ibuprofen does not improve outcomes within 1 week.