Can you take Tylenol or Ibuprofen with Tramadol?
By
Dr Milena Locci de Oliveira (PhD)
Author bio
Dr Milena Locci de Oliveira is a Pharmacist and Doctor of Philosophy in Sciences from the University of São Paulo (USP). She has experience in microbiology, analytical toxicology, and clinical pharmacokinetics. She writes and reviews content on these topics.
Dr Milena’s Highlights:
-PhD in Sciences, University of São Paulo, Brazil, 2019.
-University College London (UCL) – Semester of remote collaboration in the areas of Pharmacometrics and Population Pharmacokinetics, 2018.
-Bachelor in Biochemical Pharmacy, University of São Paulo, Brazil, 2013.
“Science can be translated, and it is essential that everyone has access to quality information to make informed decisions” – Dr Milena Oliveira, PhD.
Professional Experience:
With a decade-long career as a researcher, Dr Milena has amassed extensive experience in conducting research projects in microbiology, analytical toxicology, and clinical pharmacokinetics.
Her expertise also extends to the preparation of technical and scientific reports, literature reviews, data analysis, and scientific communication, both oral and written.
Dr Milena has served as a Clinical Pharmacist, providing expert supervision and guidance to teams during the challenging times of the COVID-19 pandemic, particularly in the ICUs of two reference hospitals for patient hospitalization.
In her most recent role, Dr Milena worked on the implementation of the deliberatives of the São Paulo State Government Pharmaceutical Assistance Coordination. These decisions were aimed at ensuring medication access within the Unified Health System.
A widely multidisciplinary background enabled Dr Milena to become a professional capable of integrating scientific knowledge into private initiatives, education, and healthcare, delivering consistent services in patient safety and population health.
Professional Memberships & Affiliations:
Dr Milena Oliveira is a member of the Regional Council of Pharmacy of the State of São Paulo, Brazil.
Education:
-PhD in Sciences, University of São Paulo, Brazil, 2019.
-University College London (UCL) – Semester of remote collaboration, 2018.
-Bachelor in Biochemical Pharmacy, University of São Paulo, Brazil, 2013.
Relevant Published Work & Citations:
Oliveira ML de, Rocha A, Nardotto GHB, Pippa LF, Simões BP, Lanchote VL. Analysis of daunorubicin and its metabolite daunorubicinol in plasma and urine with application in the evaluation of total, renal and metabolic formation clearances in patients with acute myeloid leukemia. Journal of Pharmaceutical and Biomedical Analysis. Nov 2020. 191:113-124.
Abstracts. CPT: Pharmacometrics & Systems Pharmacology. 2020 Nov; 9 (S1).
Pippa LF, Oliveira ML de, Rocha A, de Andrade JM, Lanchote VL. Total, renal and hepatic clearances of doxorubicin and formation clearance of doxorubicinol in patients with breast cancer: Estimation of doxorubicin hepatic extraction ratio. Journal of Pharmaceutical and Biomedical Analysis. 2020 Jun 5; 185:113-231.
Godoy ALPC, De Jesus C, De Oliveira ML, Rocha A, Pereira MPM, Larangeira DF, Lanchote VL, Barrouin-Melo SM. Determination of Allopurinol and Oxypurinol in Dogs Plasma by High-Performance Liquid Chromatography with an Ultraviolet Detector: Application for Pharmacokinetic Studies. J Chromatogr Sep Tech. 2017; 8 (4).
Clímaco EC, Oliveira ML de, Pitondo-Silva A, Oliveira MG, Medeiros M, Lincopan N, et al. Clonal complexes 104, 109 and 113 playing a major role in the dissemination of OXA-carbapenemase-producing Acinetobacter baumannii in Southeast Brazil. Infection, Genetics and Evolution. 2013 Oct;19:127–33.
Conference Papers:
Oliveira, M. L.; NARDOTTO, G. H. B.; PIPPA, L. F.; ROCHA, A.; SIMOES, B. P.; LANCHOTE, V. L. . Daunorubicin metabolism and urinary excretion in patients with acute myeloid leukemia. In: 84th Annual Meeting of the German Society for Experimental and Clinical Pharmacology and Toxicology (DGPT) and the 20th Annual Meeting of the Association of the Clinical Pharmacology Germany (VKliPha), 2018, Göttingen. Naunyn-Schmiedeberg’s Arch Pharmacol, 2018. v. 391. p. S76-S76.
Oliveira, M. L.; NARDOTTO, G. H. B. ; ROCHA, A. ; SIMOES, B. P. ; LANCHOTE, V. L. . The low contribution of urinary excretion in the elimination of daunorubicin and its metabolite daunorubicinol in patients with acute myeloid leukemia. In: 49th Brazilian Congress of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics., 2017, Ribeirão Preto. Livro de Resumos, 2017. p. 64-64.
Oliveira, M. L.; PIPPA, L. F. ; ROCHA, A. ; SIMOES, B. P. ; LANCHOTE, V. L. . Quantification of daunorubicin and its metabolite daunorubicinol in human plasma by LC-MS/MS. In: I International Meeting of Environmental Health and Toxicology (IMEHTOX), 2016, Ribeirão Preto. Livro de Resumos, 2016.
Oliveira, M. L.; Clímaco, E.C. ; OLIVEIRA, M. G. ; Lincopan, N. ; Darini A.L.C. . PFGE typing of Carbapenem-Resistant Acinetobacter baumannii isolated from different University Hospitals. In: V International Postgraduate and Research Symposium, 2012.
Clímaco, E.C. ; SILVA, A. P. ; Oliveira, M. L. ; OLIVEIRA, M. G. ; Lincopan, N. ; Darini A.L.C. Relação clonal entre linhagens de Acinetobacter baumannii produtoras de carbapenemases da família OXA em quatro hospitais no Brasil. In: XXI Latin American Congress of Microbiology, 2012, Santos. XXI Latin American Congress of Microbiology, 2012.
Oliveira, M. L.; Clímaco, E.C. ; OLIVEIRA, M. G. ; Darini A.L.C. . Dissemintion of OXA carbapenemases genes in carbapenem-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii in University Hospital of Juiz de Fora, MG. In: 8th CIFARP – International Congress of Pharmaceutical Sciences, 2011, Ribeirão Preto.
Clímaco, E.C. ; Oliveira, M. L. ; OLIVEIRA, M. G. ; Darini A.L.C. . Avaliação do sequenciamento parcial do gene rpoB e de seus flanqueadores para identificação de espécies de Acinetobacter na rotina laroratorial. In: 2° International Symposium on Clinical Microbiology, 2010, Florianópolis.
You can view some of Dr Milena’s work below and links to her professional profile.
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dra-milena-locci-de-oliveira-28986042/?locale=en_US
ResearchGate: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Milena-Oliveira-6
Escavador: https://www.escavador.com/sobre/5394254/milena-locci-de-oliveira
Lattes: https://buscatextual.cnpq.br/buscatextual/busca.do
Scopus: https://www.scopus.com/authid/detail.uri?authorId=57199779361
Scholar: https://scholar.google.com/citations?view_op=list_works&hl=pt-BR&user=1YUBDIQAAAAJ
Can you take Tylenol or Ibuprofen with Tramadol?
Yes, you can take Tramadol with either Tylenol or Ibuprofen. There are no known interactions between these medications when they are used concomitantly.
Tylenol, Ibuprofen, and Tramadol are used for different severities of pain – with Tylenol being the mildest of them. Tramadol contains Acetaminophen, which is one of the safest painkillers but is unsuitable for moderate to severe pain.
Ibuprofen can manage stronger pain as compared to Tylenol, and Tramadol being a mild Opioid analgesic can be used to manage severe pain(1). The use of Ibuprofen with Tramadol is more common than the use of Tylenol and Tramadol.
No matter which one you use, both Ibuprofen and Tylenol are OTC painkillers. It’s Tramadol that you can’t get without a prescription. Make sure you talk to your healthcare provider about the best painkiller you can pair with Tramadol if needed.
Tramadol is not typically advised for mild pain, like toothache, muscle cramps, period cramps, etc. OTC medications like Tylenol and Ibuprofen are considered enough to help such pains. However, chronic pains can not be managed by OTC medications.
You can also space these medications out as you can safely take Ibuprofen and Tramadol on the same day.
However, Tramadol should not be paired with prescription painkillers or muscle relaxants, like Flexeril.
Risks associated with combining Tylenol and Tramadol or Ibuprofen and Tramadol together
The use of Tramadol is associated with some side effects when used either with Tylenol or Ibuprofen. These include:
- Dizziness or lightheadedness
- Nausea and vomiting
- Constipation or diarrhoea
- Dry mouth
- Headache
- Drowsiness
- Stomach pain or discomfort
- Difficulty sleeping
- Loss of appetite
- Sweating
While Ibuprofen and Tylenol (acetaminophen) have different mechanisms of action(2–3), both medications are used for pain relief and can have similar side effects when combined with tramadol.
One reason for this is that tramadol itself can cause some of these side effects, regardless of whether it is taken with ibuprofen or Tylenol. For example, dizziness, nausea, and constipation are common side effects of tramadol, and these can be exacerbated when combined with other medications.
In addition, ibuprofen and Tylenol can both cause gastrointestinal side effects such as stomach pain, nausea, and diarrhoea. These side effects can be more likely to occur when either medication is taken in high doses or for a long period of time, which can be more likely to happen when combined with tramadol for pain relief.
Finally, there may be other factors that contribute to similar side effects between ibuprofen+tramadol and Tylenol+tramadol, such as individual differences in how people metabolize and respond to medications or similarities in the way the medications affect the nervous system or other parts of the body.
So, which combination is the best for you?
Both of these combinations have their own pros and cons, and they mainly depend on the severity of your pain. Tramadol may give better pain relief when it is combined with Ibuprofen, as compared to Tylenol.
This is because Ibuprofen can also manage inflammation comorbid with pain. It is best to talk to your healthcare provider to determine the best possible OTC painkiller to combine with Tramadol for safe, effective, and maximum pain relief.
Make sure you don’t take TRamadol without your doctor’s approval. It is also important to take only as much as your doctor has recommended. Tramadol is often misused because of how it works and how it makes you feel. So, make sure you don’t take it more often.
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References
1.-
PubChem [Internet]. Bethesda (MD): National Library of Medicine (US), National Center for Biotechnology Information; 2004-. PubChem Compound Summary for CID 33741, Tramadol; [cited 2023 Feb. 08]. Available from: https://pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/compound/Tramadol
2.-
PubChem [Internet]. Bethesda (MD): National Library of Medicine (US), National Center for Biotechnology Information; 2004-. PubChem Compound Summary for CID 3672, Ibuprofen; [cited 2023 Feb. 08]. Available from: https://pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/compound/Ibuprofen
3.-
PubChem [Internet]. Bethesda (MD): National Library of Medicine (US), National Center for Biotechnology Information; 2004-. PubChem Compound Summary for CID 1983, Acetaminophen; [cited 2023 Feb. 08]. Available from: https://pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/compound/Acetaminophen
