# Reaction to ibuprofen



## Jody (7 Mar 2020)

I had a reaction this morning after having a couple of ibuprofen. All seemed well until about 45 minutes after when I started to itch a little. The itching intensified over the next half hour until it was getting quite bad. Looked in the mirror to find I was covered in small hives all over my face, forehead, scalp, lips etc. By the time I got back home it was pretty much all over my body. Some of the bumps are now a fair old size. The itching has subsided since taking some antihistamines but the bumps still remain. 

I'm not sure what to do now as my parents and partner said I may now be alergic to them. My mum reckons this is what happened when I became allergic to penicillin. 

Has anyone had or come accross this before?


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## vickster (7 Mar 2020)

Have you called 111?


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## Ming the Merciless (7 Mar 2020)

Erm why are you not asking your GP etc?


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## Mrs M (7 Mar 2020)

I took diclofenic, which is also an anti inflammatory. 
I became very itchy, scratching myself until I was bleeding.
Decided I was allergic to it. Was given it in hospital after an operation, even after I warned them.
Same thing happened again, then was told I was allergic to it.


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## Jody (7 Mar 2020)

vickster said:


> Have you called 111?



No. I did that blokey thing of going home and hoping it would go away. 



YukonBoy said:


> Erm why are you not asking your GP etc?



Because its Saturday and they aren't open.


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## Jody (7 Mar 2020)

Sounds like the same thing @Mrs M. Did they test you for the allergy. What do you do now for anti inflammatories?

Reading up online suggest allergy to Ibuprofen might also mean an alergy to Asprin and Naproxen also.


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## vickster (7 Mar 2020)

Jody said:


> Sounds like the same thing @Mrs M. Did they test you for the allergy. What do you do now for anti inflammatories?
> 
> Reading up online suggest allergy to Ibuprofen might also mean an alergy to Asprin and Naproxen also.


And possibly cox 2


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## Mrs M (7 Mar 2020)

Jody said:


> Sounds like the same thing @Mrs M. Did they test you for the allergy. What do you do now for anti inflammatories?
> 
> Reading up online suggest allergy to Ibuprofen might also mean an alergy to Asprin and Naproxen also.


I’m ok with Ibuprofen, so just take that


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## Mrs M (7 Mar 2020)

They didn’t test for allergy, didn’t seem at all interested.


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## Jody (7 Mar 2020)

Mrs M said:


> They didn’t test for allergy, didn’t seem at all interested.



Not good. In which case do i take it again to make sure I'm alergic or just avoid from now on.


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## Mrs M (7 Mar 2020)

Jody said:


> Not good. In which case do i take it again to make sure I'm alergic or just avoid from now on.


I’d probably just avoid it but might be good idea to see GP.


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## vickster (7 Mar 2020)

What did you take it for?
Take paracetamol instead?


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## gbb (7 Mar 2020)

This may explain my itchiness and hives like swelling inside my thigh, I regularly take ibrufen for OA. I might start switching regularly between ibrufen and paracetamol so's not to overdo either one.


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## midlife (7 Mar 2020)

Mrs M said:


> They didn’t test for allergy, didn’t seem at all interested.



RAST tests are a bit hit and miss for allergies, all hospitals do is choose another drug and mention the allergy in the discharge paperwork.


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## Jody (7 Mar 2020)

vickster said:


> What did you take it for?
> Take paracetamol instead?



Took antihistamine for the reaction. Only reason I took ibuprofen this morning is because our paracetamol is running low in the house and the supermarkets have been stripped bare.


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## Jody (7 Mar 2020)

Mrs M said:


> I’d probably just avoid it but might be good idea to see GP.



I'm going to book in with the GP next week if poss and see what they say. I have to see them about something else anyway.


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## Ming the Merciless (7 Mar 2020)

Jody said:


> I'm going to book in with the GP next week if poss and see what they say. I have to see them about something else anyway.



Get some photos and note how it changes before you see them. Allergic reactions occur inside the body as well as the skin.


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## classic33 (7 Mar 2020)

Jody said:


> Not good. In which case do i take it again to make sure I'm alergic or just avoid from now on.


This the first time for both, brand and reaction?
If Yes, I'd err on the cautious side and take no more.


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## Jody (7 Mar 2020)

YukonBoy said:


> Get some photos and note how it changes before you see them. Allergic reactions occur inside the body as well as the skin.



Good point. I have some images that my partner took but other than the itching I'm feeling ok.


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## Jody (7 Mar 2020)

classic33 said:


> This the first time for both, brand and reaction?
> If Yes, I'd err on the cautious side and take no more.



Yes and yes.


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## oldwheels (7 Mar 2020)

Jody said:


> Good point. I have some images that my partner took but other than the itching I'm feeling ok.


Digital cameras or a phone are a godsend in some cases. I had terrible inflammation and itching but only in bed at night and it disappeared during the daytime. Photos on my camera gave the doctor some idea of the cause and a cream of some kind fixed the problem but without the camera I would have been stuck.


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## Drago (7 Mar 2020)

I don't do well with anti inflammatory meds. Itchy hands, minor (but not alarming) shortness of breath, and they hit me like a hammer with their effects- ibuprofen leaves me stoned. This leaves me with paracetamol or aspirin for minor pain relief, and I get amitriptyline from th doc if anything stronger is required. One of my neighbours is a paramedic and she reckons reactions to ibuprofen aren't uncommon, but are rarely troublesome,


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## classic33 (7 Mar 2020)

Jody said:


> Yes and yes.


Make a note of how many you've taken, on the box, and take the box with you to the doctors.


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## ColinJ (7 Mar 2020)

Drago said:


> One of my neighbours is a paramedic and she reckons reactions to ibuprofen aren't uncommon, but are rarely troublesome


_Allergic _reactions, maybe, but an awful lot of people have problems with gastrointestinal bleeding if they take too much ibuprofen. A friend of mine almost died after he developed a stomach ulcer which perforated just after he had flown back from a holiday.


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## classic33 (7 Mar 2020)

ColinJ said:


> _Allergic _reactions, maybe, but an awful lot of people have problems with gastrointestinal bleeding if they take too much ibuprofen. A friend of mine almost died after he developed a stomach ulcer which perforated just after he had flown back from a holiday.


Given two to take, at the doctors, got to spend the afternoon in A&E afterwards.


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## Drago (7 Mar 2020)

ColinJ said:


> _Allergic _reactions, maybe, but an awful lot of people have problems with gastrointestinal bleeding if they take too much ibuprofen. A friend of mine almost died after he developed a stomach ulcer which perforated just after he had flown back from a holiday.


Indeed, but most medicines are nasty to a greater or lesser degree if taken in excess for for longer than recommended.


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## Jody (7 Mar 2020)

classic33 said:


> Make a note of how many you've taken, on the box, and take the box with you to the doctors.



Will do. I only took two and haven't ever had a reaction like this.


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## classic33 (7 Mar 2020)

Jody said:


> Will do. I only took two and haven't ever had a reaction like this.


They all differ slightly, so taking the box with you is the safest way.


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## ColinJ (7 Mar 2020)

Drago said:


> Indeed, but most medicines are nasty to a greater or lesser degree if taken in excess for for longer than recommended.


Here's the NHS advice...



NHS website said:


> If you need to take ibuprofen for more than _6 months_, your doctor may prescribe a medicine to protect your stomach from any side effects.


He took it for _2 weeks_ after breaking a finger!


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## presta (7 Mar 2020)

On the subject of allergic reactions, is anyone using the new *'Sport' *version of Wash & Go shampoo? I didn't realise I'd picked up anything different to usual until I noticed that my scalp and face felt freezing cold when I washed my hair. At first I thought it was a draught coming from a disused vent in the bathroom ceiling, but then I felt the vapour from it catching in my windpipe as I breathed. So I made a mental note not to buy ay more of the stuff when the bottle ran out, and forgot about it.

Then when I was about halfway down the bottle I developed a bleeding sore in my right ear, followed a couple of days later by a matching one in the left ear. When I looked at the ingredients I found that it's got menthol in it, and a quick Google found that "there are a few reports of people being very sensitive to menthol and having severe skin reactions to even small amounts". So the rest of the bottle went down the drain, and within a few days the sores had gone.


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## postman (10 Mar 2020)

I never take it.It rips my stomach to shreds,we don't know why.And i don't intend to find out.


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## fossyant (10 Mar 2020)

@Jody 

Did you make it ?


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## LCpl Boiled Egg (10 Mar 2020)

It might not be the drug, but the added ingredients. My wife can't take certain brands of pills as they have a type of starch in them which brings her out in a rash/hives. Keep the packet and take it with you to your GP.


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## Jody (10 Mar 2020)

fossyant said:


> @Jody
> 
> Did you make it ?



lol I'm still here.


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## fossyant (10 Mar 2020)

Jody said:


> lol I'm still here.


Thank goodness.


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