 In a double-blind,
placebo-controlled study, researchers from John Radcliffe Hospital in the United Kingdom
compare the relative merits of single doses of ibuprofen and ibuprofen plus caffeine in
the treatment of pain after third molar removal.The study was designed using a
randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, single-dose parallel-group comparison of
placebo, ibuprofen 200 and 400 mg with ibuprofen 200 mg plus 50, 100 or 200 mg of caffeine
involving 161 patients undergoing lower third molar removal.
All active treatments produced significant analgesia and mood elevation compared with
placebo. There was no significant difference in the effects of 200 and 400 mg of
ibuprofen. Adding caffeine to 200 mg ibuprofen produced significantly more
analgesic effect at 45 and 60 min than ibuprofen 200 mg alone. Ten patients
reported 11 adverse effects, none in the highest caffeine dose group.
CONCLUSIONS: Caffeine increased the analgesic effect of 200 mg
ibuprofen, through an earlier onset of analgesic effect. This was achieved in this single
dose context without problematic adverse effects.
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