What do systematic reviews say?

Ibuprofen (single postoperative oral dose; 200 mg to 512 mg) vs paracetamol

Ibuprofen (single postoperative oral dose; 200 mg to 512 mg) leads to higher proportion of patients with >50% maximum pain relief (TOTPAR) over 6… compared with paracetamol (acetaminophen) (single postoperative oral dose; 600 mg… (high certainty).

• Ibuprofen and/or paracetamol (acetaminophen) for pain relief after surgical removal of lower wisdom teeth 2013 · Cochrane All outcomes

  6 hours postdosing · Ibuprofen 400 mg vs paracetamol 1000 mg
  RR 1.47 [1.28, 1.69]
  5 studies · 646 participants
  High

Ibuprofen (single postoperative oral dose; 200 mg to 512 mg) vs paracetamol

Ibuprofen (single postoperative oral dose; 200 mg to 512 mg) leads to higher proportion of patients with >50% maximum pain relief (TOTPAR) over 2… compared with paracetamol (acetaminophen) (single postoperative oral dose; 600 mg… (high certainty).

• Ibuprofen and/or paracetamol (acetaminophen) for pain relief after surgical removal of lower wisdom teeth 2013 · Cochrane All outcomes

  2 hours postdosing · Ibuprofen 400 mg vs paracetamol 1000 mg
  RR 1.30 [1.09, 1.55]
  5 studies · 645 participants
  High

Ibuprofen (single postoperative oral dose; 200 mg to 512 mg) vs paracetamol

Ibuprofen (single postoperative oral dose; 200 mg to 512 mg) leads to higher patients not using rescue medication at 6 hours compared with paracetamol (acetaminophen) (single postoperative oral dose; 600 mg… (high certainty).

• Ibuprofen and/or paracetamol (acetaminophen) for pain relief after surgical removal of lower wisdom teeth 2013 · Cochrane All outcomes

  6 hours postdosing · Ibuprofen 400 mg vs paracetamol 1000 mg
  RR 1.50 [1.25, 1.79]
  4 studies · 542 participants
  High

Ibuprofen (single postoperative oral dose; 200 mg to 512 mg) vs paracetamol

Ibuprofen (single postoperative oral dose; 200 mg to 512 mg) led to higher patients using rescue medication at 8 hours compared with paracetamol (acetaminophen) (single postoperative oral dose; 600 mg…; GRADE not reported.

• Ibuprofen and/or paracetamol (acetaminophen) for pain relief after surgical removal of lower wisdom teeth 2013 · Cochrane All outcomes

  8 hours postdosing
  RR 2.02 [1.57, 2.60]
  2 studies
  GRADE not reported

Ibuprofen (single postoperative oral dose; 200 mg to 512 mg) vs paracetamol

• Ibuprofen and/or paracetamol (acetaminophen) for pain relief after surgical removal of lower wisdom teeth 2013 · Cochrane All outcomes

  Study period (immediate postoperative)
  The majority of adverse events were minor in nature and usually included nausea, vomiting, headaches and dizziness. Side effect profiles have not been included in a meta-analysis as multiple adverse events were…
  7 studies
  GRADE not reported

Combined paracetamol plus ibuprofen in a single tablet (e.g. paracetamol 1000 mg/ibuprofen 400 mg or 500/200 mg) vs Single drugs given separately (paracetamol 1000 mg or ibuprofen 400 mg)

Combined paracetamol plus ibuprofen in a single tablet (e.g.… showed no clear difference in proportion of patients with >50% maximum pain relief (TOTPAR) over 2… compared with single drugs given separately (paracetamol 1000 mg or ibuprofen 400… (moderate certainty).

• Ibuprofen and/or paracetamol (acetaminophen) for pain relief after surgical removal of lower wisdom teeth 2013 · Cochrane All outcomes

  2 hours postdosing · Paracetamol 1000 mg/ibuprofen 400 mg vs paracetamol 1000 mg or ibuprofen 400 mg
  RR 1.29 [0.91, 1.85]
  1 study · 170 participants
  Moderate

Combined paracetamol plus ibuprofen in a single tablet (e.g. paracetamol 1000 mg/ibuprofen 400 mg or 500/200 mg) vs Single drugs given separately (paracetamol 1000 mg or ibuprofen 400 mg)

• Ibuprofen and/or paracetamol (acetaminophen) for pain relief after surgical removal of lower wisdom teeth 2013 · Cochrane All outcomes

  Study period (immediate postoperative)
  The majority of adverse events were minor in nature and usually included nausea, vomiting, headaches and dizziness. Side effect profiles have not been included in a meta-analysis as multiple adverse events were…
  2 studies
  GRADE not reported

Combined paracetamol plus ibuprofen in a single tablet (e.g. paracetamol 1000 mg/ibuprofen 400 mg or 500/200 mg) vs Single drugs given separately (paracetamol 1000 mg or ibuprofen 400 mg)

Combined paracetamol plus ibuprofen in a single tablet (e.g.… probably leads to higher proportion of patients with >50% maximum pain relief (TOTPAR) over 6… compared with single drugs given separately (paracetamol 1000 mg or ibuprofen 400… (moderate certainty).

• Ibuprofen and/or paracetamol (acetaminophen) for pain relief after surgical removal of lower wisdom teeth 2013 · Cochrane All outcomes

  6 hours postdosing · Paracetamol 1000 mg/ibuprofen 400 mg vs paracetamol 1000 mg or ibuprofen 400 mg
  RR 1.77 [1.32, 2.39]
  1 study · 170 participants
  Moderate

Combined paracetamol plus ibuprofen in a single tablet (e.g. paracetamol 1000 mg/ibuprofen 400 mg or 500/200 mg) vs Single drugs given separately (paracetamol 1000 mg or ibuprofen 400 mg)

Combined paracetamol plus ibuprofen in a single tablet (e.g.… leads to higher patients not using rescue medication at 8 hours compared with single drugs given separately (paracetamol 1000 mg or ibuprofen 400… (high certainty).

• Ibuprofen and/or paracetamol (acetaminophen) for pain relief after surgical removal of lower wisdom teeth 2013 · Cochrane All outcomes

  8 hours postdosing · Paracetamol 1000/500 mg/ibuprofen 400/200 mg vs single constituent drugs
  RR 1.60 [1.36, 1.88]
  2 studies · 467 participants
  High