Hi there! I live in the UK and i understand a lot of people on here are from america but im hoping i can google the equivalent here.

So im a year post gastric bypass and had a lower wisdom tooth removed friday and came across the problem of not being able to take ibuprofen, ive been taking paracetamol (actually taking anadin extra before learning we arent supposed to have aspirin either! Oops) and rubbing ibuprofen gel on my jaw but its made me wonder, what the heck do we take for swelling and inflammation now?? Im going to ice my jaw because its still slightly swollen but im curious about the future and painkillers

Sam

This is a problem that I ran into also. Basically there isn’t anything. Well there is an herb that’s supposed to help with inflammation called Tumeric but I never tied it. Some people say injections and topical NSAIDs are okay but others say no. I was lucky I had sleeve when I needed them and was told that because I was so far out that I could take them on very rare occasions. I talked to my surgeon today about revision and asked about NSAIDs with SADI vs Bypass. He said it’s a definite no with Bypass but didn’t say what you can take instead. Probably just pain medication and ice like you said and maybe try the Tumeric. Google says it can interact with some drugs so be sure to talk to Dr or pharmacist

Edited April 29, 20242 yr by ShoppGirl

Thank you! I tried googling as well and didnt find the answer i was hoping for but i'll definitely look into tumeric, ive heard its good for you before. Just hoping i haven't done any damage with the aspirin as well but im still learning, i appreciate the advice

50 minutes ago, SamDS100 said:

Thank you! I tried googling as well and didnt find the answer i was hoping for but i'll definitely look into tumeric, ive heard its good for you before. Just hoping i haven't done any damage with the aspirin as well but im still learning, i appreciate the advice

I did ask the dr what the worse case scenerio is with the NSAIDs and he said ulcers are the concern. I asked if they are treatable he said they are very painful but yes they are treatable. Fingers crossed your fine though ?

Edited April 29, 20242 yr by ShoppGirl

I'm also just a year post-op, and I recently had some super weird severe shoulder pain (saw the Dr ?) and I took a couple Advil/ibuprofen maybe 3x-4x in total over the course of a couple weeks. I ate first, and chewed a couple Tums. There was recently an episode of Dr. Weiner's podcast A Pound of Cure, where he addresses NSAIDs after bypass, and he touches on the spectrum of a very limited, careful taking of ibuprofen for a specific short term pain, vs someone who might have a chronic pain issue or injury that needs continuous dosing. Good luck and hope your jaw feels better soon!

Give your surgeon a call/email & ask. They know you & your situation best & may give you different advice than they may give another patient.

I’m a sleever & at the 2 year mark my surgeon told me I could take NSAIDS but with limits. One tablet (so half dose), not on consecutive days & not for long periods of time. My back went out Sunday morning (fine all night & went to get up in the morning & oh God - well I said another word ?). This is how infrequently I take NSAIDS though: two unopened boxes both expired & one small box of 12 with one tablet left.So 12 tablets over 3years including two surgeries (gall removal & a skin graft) & an unpleasant bout of COVID.

Try baby teething tips like wetting a washer & freezing it & then suck or press the washer against the wound site. Or there’s always rubbing Brandy or whisky on the site though it might irritate the wound - you may not care about the pain after that LOL!

13 hours ago, SamDS100 said:

Hi there! I live in the UK and i understand a lot of people on here are from america but im hoping i can google the equivalent here.

So im a year post gastric bypass and had a lower wisdom tooth removed friday and came across the problem of not being able to take ibuprofen, ive been taking paracetamol (actually taking anadin extra before learning we arent supposed to have aspirin either! Oops) and rubbing ibuprofen gel on my jaw but its made me wonder, what the heck do we take for swelling and inflammation now?? Im going to ice my jaw because its still slightly swollen but im curious about the future and painkillers

Sam

@SamDS100 Hey Sam. I am also from the UK - I think contacting your surgeon may be a good idea, but if you can't get in contact with them, try reaching out to Simon Monkhouse. I believe he is on Instagram as @weightlosssurgeon and he is more than happy to help with any questions people have in my experience

There is a Scandinavian study on NSAID use in both sleeve and bypass patients. It was a longitudinal study that looked at records for patients who had been prescribed NSAIDs after these surgeries and compared subsequent ulcer formation to that of the general non-bariatric population with a history of NSAID use. For sleeve patients, there was no greater risk of ulcers than for non-bariatric patients, even when prescribed for regular use of 30+ days. For bypass patients, there was no greater incidence of ulcers if NSAIDs were taken for less than 30 days, but there was a measurable increased risk when prescribed for 30+ days. You might ask your doctor what they think about this study (which they may or may not have read). There seems to be an extreme amount of caution in the recommendations compared to the actual risk established in this study. And while the risk increased in bypass patients with chronic NSAID use, it's worth noting only a small percentage of those patients actually developed ulcers. Do with this information what you will.

Thanks everyone! I really appreciate the help, i hot dry socket which is healing now but im definitely going to plan for future illnesses! Still no regrets!