Intravenous ibuprofen for pain and opioid reduction in older patients

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Created On: 09/10/2025

Intravenous ibuprofen (IVIB) has been demonstrated to be a safe and effective option for easing pain and fever in both pediatric and adult populations.

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Key take away

Intravenously administered ibuprofen markedly reduces postoperative pain and opioid use in patients aged 60 years and older.

Background

Intravenous ibuprofen (IVIB) has been demonstrated to be a safe and effective option for easing pain and fever in both pediatric and adult populations. However, its use in older adults warrants further investigation. Hence, this retrospective analysis sought to assess the safety and efficacy of IVIB in individuals aged 60 years and older.

Method

A post hoc subgroup analysis was carried out using data pooled from 4 prospective clinical trials where hospitalized patients received IVIB every 6 hours for up to 5 days to treat pain and/or fever. Efficacy outcomes encompassed total morphine consumption and pain severity measured through visual analog scale (VAS). Safety outcomes were determined via the monitoring of adverse events (AEs).

Result

Among 1,041 patients who received treatment, 757 were aged 18 to 59 years, and 284 were aged 60 years or older. Of the older cohort, 61 received a placebo and 223 received IVIB. All volunteers were evaluated for safety, while 591 patients from 2 placebo-controlled studies were included in the efficacy analysis.

Adverse events were more frequently reported in the placebo group across both age categories, with similar rates of serious AEs noted between IVIB and placebo groups. In older patients, IVIB substantially decreased pain at rest by 24.0%, pain with movement by 20.0% between 6 and 24 hours postoperatively, and total morphine use by 23.2% when compared to placebo.

Conclusion

IVIB was well-tolerated and effectively decreased postoperative pain and opioid consumption in older population. The findings support IVIB use as a safe and effective non-opioid analgesic for perioperative pain in the elderly population.