Re: Do topical NSAIDS really need to be applied locally?
Oh agreed. Don't get me wrong - I would prefer a topical gel after learning NSAIDs can cause stomach bleeding, etc etc. Going through the skin and getting directly absorbed into the bloodstream sounds way better. but it shouldn't really matter where you apply it.
The package even says apply directly to the affected area. Hilarious if these would be placebo instructions on a prescription product but that's exactly what I think is going on here.
Topical anesthetics like lidocaine, capsaicin, camphor etc act locally, not globally. They disrupt the local nerve activity. In a way as to lessen pain. You don't ingest them.
NSAIDS do act globally. A pill will ease pain anywhere in the body. You don't normally rub ibuprofen on a sprain because it acts through the central nervous system and it needs to get into the bloodstream for that to happen. But it can do that also through a topical gel.
That's what it seems to me at any rate. .
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