New findings on the success of certain anti-inflammatory drugs uncovered that ibuprofen may not be the best option for individuals with certain types of chronic pain.

The study took a look at the success of a couple of different anti-inflammatory medications – ibuprofen, naproxen and celecoxib –  in managing chronic pain caused by inflammation. Researchers tracked thousands of patients who took one of the three medications for pain management over the course of roughly two years. The conditions being treated were most often osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis.

Anti-Inflammatory Drug Findings

At the outset, researchers expected individuals in the celecoxib group would have slightly more adverse heart events, as the drug and similar drugs were believed to be linked to potential heart problems. However, not only was that not the case in this study, celecoxib actually outperformed the other two medications.

Researchers found that celecoxib did not cause more heart attacks, strokes or deaths compared to ibuprofen, and it actually exhibited lower rates of kidney problems.

“In almost every measure, ibuprofen looks worse, naproxen is intermediate and celecoxib is the best,” the study’s lead author wrote.

However, researchers cautioned against simply switching off of ibuprofen simply because of the study results. If you don’t have a preexisting heart condition or you don’t take ibuprofen on a regular basis, you shouldn’t have to worry about additional heart risks. If your current regimen is working, then discuss any potential changes with your doctor before switching up your routine.

Additionally, researchers noted that the study did not evaluate celecoxib’s effectiveness at treating chronic pain itself. Instead, they were only examining at whether or not specific anti-inflammatory drugs came with additional health risks.