Billy,

This information is just general health information that is readily available to the public. I tend to like to use generic drug names and put the brand names in the parenthases. I think that people who routinely take over-the-counter drugs should know the generic names.

If acetaminophen (paracetamol, TYLENOL) works for you, that's probably the best, but you must not take more than four grams per day and if you do use that much, you must not have more than two alcoholic beverages per day. Use too much Tylenol or mix it with a lot of booze, not so hot on the liver.

The NSAIDS (Non-Steroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drugs) all can cause damage to the stomach lining. The three NSAIDS available over the counter are Aspirin, ibuprofen (MOTRIN, ADVIL, NUPRIN), and naproxen (NAPROSYN, ALEVE). Naproxen is the one that is most commonly used to manage the symptoms of AS. It's generally given in a dose of 500mg twice or three times daily. NSAIDs should not be used or patients with known kidney problems or a stomach ulcer (known or suspected) without the careful supervision of a physician. To help reduce the risk of having stomach problems, I took omeprazole (PRILOSEC) over-the-counter. It doesn't eliminate the risk, though.

Hope that helps.

And sorry, but I don't know much about Bextra.

-MLG

___________________________________________
-Mike
Certified Mad Doctor (in training)

___________________________________________ -Mike Certified Mad Doctor