Painkillers for arthritic hip. Help please!

Ah, that explains why it's more expensive than the £1.99 ibuprofen tubes. Thanks, that's really interesting. Off to the pharmacy to buy some later. You have all be so helpful, can't thank you enough. Just to hear from people going through the same does help.

Welshwife The Voltarol gel that I use (3.2%) contains diclofenac, not ibuprofen.

Mellow lots of info on the Voltarol website which you might find helpful.
www.voltarol.co.uk

Lots of interesting help, thanks. annsixty I found your comment very useful in fact, as I was beginning to wonder whether nothing is helping! However, I'll look at Tiger Balm Welshwife, after the Voltarol. JenniferEccles I'm on a very low income so could no way go privately. I will phone the secretary next week, as I emailed a while back and had no reply. GrannyLaine co-codamol and ibuprofen, hadn't thought of that. May try it tonight. Just the odd night's sleep, or few hours' sleep, would be marvellous. Lyndylou I took Solpadeine for a tooth abcess once, I remember it was brilliant, but I was younger then and suspect it would leave me foggy now. Hey ho!

MellowYellow you have my sympathy, I'm in a similar position with pain at night which is really hard to manage. I've recently had a discussion with my GP and have started taking CoCodamol (aka Zapain) in the 30/500 strength which is prescription only, plus Ibuprofen. It is fairly effective in that I'm getting a few hours unbroken sleep and doesn't leave me foggy in the morning. I do hope you find a solution that works for you

Sorry MellowYellow my post clashed with yours saying you can not take codeine!

I can not take ibuprofen, it upsets my stomach. Before my right hip replacement I was prescribed paracetamol and codeine for night time use only. Now I am waiting for the left hip, I take Solpadeine soluble, which is a mix of paracetamol and codeine but only at night as codeine is addictive. It is only available over the counter at the chemist but I have been able to obtain it from an online chemist during lockdown,

I have had hip and knee pain over the years and the Dr did not want me to take ibuprofen because of the blood pressure tablets I take. I found voltarol good and you can sometimes get it on prescription - however my new doctor said not to use it too much as it contained ibuprofen which did get into the system. I asked at the pharmacy if they had anything herbal and they gave me a pot of Tiger Balm - I have found it to be very good for any pain in my knees or hips - and it smells wonderful!
I see they do a white one for headaches but have not tried that.

Thank you so much all of you, and such quick replies! So kind... I'll splash out on the stronger Voltarol first and if that works I'll see if I can get it on prescription. If it doesn't work I'll ask about the Amitriptyline or Tramadol. Codeine won't work for me, I know. That's what I took after my knee op and I was as high as a kite on it - I live in a tiny flat and couldn't find my way back to my bed from the bathroom. Thanks also for kind wishes. I would love to hope for an operation soon(ish) but I can't see that happening...

I find as I did with my knee before it was replaced that when you are grinding bone on bone nothing helps.
I am now only able to walk using a walker.
I have Zapain prescribed, that is 500 mgs paracetamol and 30 mgs of codeine in each tablet, 2 tabs 3/4 times a day.
It now has no effect at all.
Sorry to be such a downer but I am in constant pain.
My op, postponed in March, is now not likely to take place before October.

What a horrible situation to be in.
Have you thought of phoning your consultant’s secretary to see where you are on the list?

If your operation will be several months could you think of having the worst hip done privately? That would certainly speed things up. It might not be as expensive as you feared.

Regarding painkillers I believe co-codamol is a strong effective pain relief.

Could you ask your doctor for a prescription for the Voltarol Mellow?
I do think it’s better than ibuprofen gel which I’ve also tried.
The Voltarol seems expensive but I find I don’t need very much, so a tube lasts quite a long time.

MellowYellow I had no side effects but I only used them if I had a couple of sleepless nights but my GP assured me that it was a very small dose.

I used Voltarol Joint Pain Relief 2.32% Gel while I was waiting for my hip replacement. Application each night at bedtime allowed me to get a decent night’s sleep. I didn’t take oral painkillers at all unless I knew I had a very heavy day with a lot of walking, and then I took aspirin and codeine four hourly during the day - but never for more than one day. Codeine is addictive and if you take it regularly, the effect wears off. Aspirin is better than paracetamol because it is anti-inflammatory, but you have to be careful because it can cause gastric ulcers.

'19Mrst1405
Have you tried tramadol with paracetamol? Works for me.'
No, I haven't... yet. I'll consider that, thanks.

crazyH, ibuprofen doesn't seem to touch the pain. What does help a bit is 2 soluble aspirins, but that's really dodgy for stomachs.

Ibuprofen is my tablet of choice. I probably take two x 200mg most nights before I go to bed. It certainly helps. But I am conscious of the effect on my stomach....so far, so good.
I hope you will soon get the date for your operation. All the best !!

Have you tried tramadol with paracetamol? Works for me.

tanith, did you have side effects from the Amitriptyline? I may mention it to my doctor. I'm very sensitive to all medication unfortunately. When I had a knee replacement I could only take paracetamol cos the other drugs disorientated me. I'm a pharmacist's nightmare really! But this pain is tons worse than the knee was, before or after the op.

No I haven't tried Voltarol jane because it's so expensive. Is it better than the cheaper ibuprofen gels? I buy those but they don't help a lot.

I took Naproxen with Omeprazole for my hips, it helped a lot but while I was waiting for my surgery my GP prescribed a small dose of Amitriptyline to help me sleep at night which also worked really well..
I hope you don’t have to wait too long I know how painful it can be. Do try to stay active while you are waiting (not easy) but the stronger your muscles are the better your recovery will be.

Have you tried Voltarol gel, Mellow?