Anti-inflammatory drugs for low back pain

Information for the public

Depending on your age and health, your healthcare professional may offer you a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID). These can sometimes cause stomach pain so they should also offer you another medicine to help with this. They should not offer you paracetamol on its own, but may suggest using it along with weak opioids (a type of medicine to treat pain).

Your doctor may offer you a weak opioid pain medicine, like codeine, if anti-inflammatories haven't helped or your doctor thinks they are not right for you. But opioid pain medicine can cause dependence. This is when your body develops a need for the medicine, which means you can have withdrawal symptoms when you stop taking it. Your doctor should not offer you this type of pain medicine if you have had pain for a long time.