Kidney Transplant: Advil, Motrin, Ibuprofen?

Posted by hello1234 @hello1234, Feb 16, 2023

Hi Fellow Kidney Transplants,
I had my two root canals done yesterday. My endodonist would like me to take an anti-inflammatory like Advil, Motrin or Ibuprofen. I know when we had chronic kidney disease we needed to stay away from Ibuprofen. But now that we had our transplant, are we able to take Ibuprofen occasionally or are you still staying away from it? (I was told that Tylenol is not an anti-inflammatory, but it helps with the pain).
Please give me your thoughts.
Many thanks!

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I wouldn’t feel comfortable to tell you what to take. I know that Tylenol is okay for me if I don’t go beyond Daily recommended dose.
Considering your current kidney status, I would be extra cautious to take anything that is not on our approved list.
I have had the occasional experience when a care provider who is not my PCP will say to take Ibuprofen, Advil, or Motrin - that is when I remind them that I am a transplant recipient. Then they say to take the Tylenol if that is what I’m supposed to take.
Sorry that I’m not much help. Sorry for your pain. Why don’t you call a pharmacy an ask a pharmacist before they close.

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Hi @rosemarya 😊
Thank you for sharing your thoughts! When you have a question like this, do you normally contact your transplant coordinator, your local nephrologist or your PCP?

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Good Morning @hello1234,
I was told by my transplant team, I would never be able to take ibuprofen, which includes Advil and Motrin ever again. Even my donor was prohibited from taking NSAIDs. I was advised to only take Tylenol. This was at Mayo Rochester. You can always ask your Transplant team they encourage you to call if you have questions. I believe they would even rather have you take Tylenol with codeine rather than an NSAID for severe pain like immediately following transplant. I am not recommending this. I’m just telling you what they told me. Please contact your team.
I hope your root canals work and your pain will be gone quickly! Take care!

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@jennifer0726

Good Morning @hello1234,
I was told by my transplant team, I would never be able to take ibuprofen, which includes Advil and Motrin ever again. Even my donor was prohibited from taking NSAIDs. I was advised to only take Tylenol. This was at Mayo Rochester. You can always ask your Transplant team they encourage you to call if you have questions. I believe they would even rather have you take Tylenol with codeine rather than an NSAID for severe pain like immediately following transplant. I am not recommending this. I’m just telling you what they told me. Please contact your team.
I hope your root canals work and your pain will be gone quickly! Take care!

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Hi @jennifer0726 😊
Thank you so much letting me know what you were told at Rochester. That's very helpful. Especially the Tylenol with codeine idea.
I had my two root canals done on Wednesday and now one of the teeth has a shooting pain like an electric shock when eating anything ..
even oatmeal or baby food. I just called the endodonist and he told me come over this morning so I am leaving my house in 10 minutes to go to his office. (I will keep you posted on the outcome.)
I have this terrible feeling that an extraction is in my future. I hope I am wrong.
When I called my transplant coordinator, she told me to contact my local nephrologist regarding my Advil, Motrin,
Ibuprofen pain medication question. Do you get that response when you call your transplant nurse with a question? Are you referred to your local PCP or nephrologist for most questions?

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@hello1234

Hi @jennifer0726 😊
Thank you so much letting me know what you were told at Rochester. That's very helpful. Especially the Tylenol with codeine idea.
I had my two root canals done on Wednesday and now one of the teeth has a shooting pain like an electric shock when eating anything ..
even oatmeal or baby food. I just called the endodonist and he told me come over this morning so I am leaving my house in 10 minutes to go to his office. (I will keep you posted on the outcome.)
I have this terrible feeling that an extraction is in my future. I hope I am wrong.
When I called my transplant coordinator, she told me to contact my local nephrologist regarding my Advil, Motrin,
Ibuprofen pain medication question. Do you get that response when you call your transplant nurse with a question? Are you referred to your local PCP or nephrologist for most questions?

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Sorry for your pain. I hope your are feeling better very soon. I would recommend calling your Transplant Coordinator first who will check with your Transplant Center Neph. They want to protect your new kidney at all costs, even though the pain is not related to the kidney transplant. The PCP should defer to the Transplant Center. I was also told by the Transplant Center Coordinator/Neph to take an antibiotic 2 hours prior to any dental work The only time I call my PCP is for issues other than transplant related, such as need to rehab PT/OT in home care for scar tissue desensitization as part of the recovery. I am glad that my TC neph is starting to talk more with my PCP which helps too as the PCP was deferring too much to the TC for everything. I was getting the run around. I am hoping my dental work will wait until 6 months after transplant which is May. Take care and rest. Maybe the Tylenol with codeine will help but as the TC. BB

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@jennifer0726

Good Morning @hello1234,
I was told by my transplant team, I would never be able to take ibuprofen, which includes Advil and Motrin ever again. Even my donor was prohibited from taking NSAIDs. I was advised to only take Tylenol. This was at Mayo Rochester. You can always ask your Transplant team they encourage you to call if you have questions. I believe they would even rather have you take Tylenol with codeine rather than an NSAID for severe pain like immediately following transplant. I am not recommending this. I’m just telling you what they told me. Please contact your team.
I hope your root canals work and your pain will be gone quickly! Take care!

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Hi @jennifer0726 😊
@blbird33 😊
I just received a notice from transplant. NO Motrin, Advil or Ibuprofen for the rest of my life!
My endodonist worked on my bite this morning by filing down the high tooth. It feels much better after all his work. It still feels sore...but I can tolerate the discomfort with a little Tylenol.
Thank you so much for all your emotional support and excellent information to NOT take Ibuprofen! I am very happy that I reached out to get your thoughts.

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Does your endo know you had a transplant? If so he should know that any transplant, per my team at Mayo Phoenix, is accompanied by No N-saids! Yes, Tylenol stinks as it is ineffective for many people but pain lets you know you are alive.
Best always,
s!

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Hi @scottij @jennifer0726 @leahd @cmael @rosemarya @loribmt @leahd @caretakermom
It seems like everyone on this thread knew that Motin, Advil and Ibuprofen is off the table for kidney transplant patients (except me).
When I messaged my transplant coordinator, she messaged back her standard response to "Call my local nephrologist" and I should not take it if I have "high blood pressure" (which I don't) instead of saying don't take it. What is your experience with your transplant coordinator?

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@blbird33

Sorry for your pain. I hope your are feeling better very soon. I would recommend calling your Transplant Coordinator first who will check with your Transplant Center Neph. They want to protect your new kidney at all costs, even though the pain is not related to the kidney transplant. The PCP should defer to the Transplant Center. I was also told by the Transplant Center Coordinator/Neph to take an antibiotic 2 hours prior to any dental work The only time I call my PCP is for issues other than transplant related, such as need to rehab PT/OT in home care for scar tissue desensitization as part of the recovery. I am glad that my TC neph is starting to talk more with my PCP which helps too as the PCP was deferring too much to the TC for everything. I was getting the run around. I am hoping my dental work will wait until 6 months after transplant which is May. Take care and rest. Maybe the Tylenol with codeine will help but as the TC. BB

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Hi @blbird33 😊
It sounds like you are having an excellent experience with your transplant coordinator. Are you newly transplanted? My coordinator gives me the feeling that I should not be calling her. She refers me to my local nephrologist or PCP all the time. It's upsetting to have a coordinator that doesn't feel like an advocate. Maybe she's overwhelmed with volume, but every contact is the same answer to call my local nephrologist or PCP. Maybe because I am two years post transplant. But it seems like everyone on Connect is always calling their coordinators with questions or telling me to call them. I feel terrible to be complaining, but I am concerned that this person is so important to my health.

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@hello1234

Hi @scottij @jennifer0726 @leahd @cmael @rosemarya @loribmt @leahd @caretakermom
It seems like everyone on this thread knew that Motin, Advil and Ibuprofen is off the table for kidney transplant patients (except me).
When I messaged my transplant coordinator, she messaged back her standard response to "Call my local nephrologist" and I should not take it if I have "high blood pressure" (which I don't) instead of saying don't take it. What is your experience with your transplant coordinator?

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Hi @hello1234 I message the post transplant team of nurses at Mayo, not a coordinator with questions.
I have never had them refer my questions to my local PCP and I don’t have a local nephrologist. The team is usually very responsive. I think technically they have a few days to get back to you, but usually it’s less than 24 hours.
I am glad you got clarification. Tooth pain is awful. Hope you are feeling much better now!

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