Ibuprofen With or Without Dexamethasone for Acute Radicular Low Back Pain.
Montefiore Medical Center
Summary
This will be a placebo controlled, randomized, double-blind, comparative effectiveness study, in which we patients are enrolled during an emergency department (ED) visit for acute radicular low back pain (LBP) and followed by telephone two and seven days later. Patients will be randomized to receive an oral dose of dexamethasone for 2 consecutive days or placebo during an ED visit for acute radicular LBP. Every patient will receive a 7 day supply of ibuprofen and a low back pain education session.
Eligibility
- Age range
- 18–70 years
- Sex
- All
- Healthy volunteers
- Yes
Inclusion Criteria: * Present to ED primarily for management of acute radicular LBP, defined as pain or paresthesia originating from the lower back and radiating to the buttock and or leg in a radicular pattern. Some patients may not have prominent LBP but a radicular symptom--we will include these patients as well. * Patient is to be discharged home. * Age 18-70 Enrollment will be limited to adults \<70 years because of the increased risk of adverse medication effects in older adults. * Pain duration \<2 week * Prior to the acute attack of radicular LBP, back pain cannot occur more frequentl…
Interventions
- DrugIbuprofen 400 mg
Ibuprofen 400 mg PO every 8 hours as needed for 7 days
- DrugDexamethasone Oral
Dexamethasone 16 mg PO during ED visit and next day
- BehavioralEducational Intervention
Research personnel will provide each patient with a 15-minute educational intervention. This will be based on National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases Handout on Health: Back Pain information
Locations (2)
- Albert Einstein College of Medicine/Montefiore Medical Center - Weiler EDThe Bronx, New York
- Montefiore Medical Center - Moses EDThe Bronx, New York