# Are there any interactions between acetaminophen (Tylenol) and ibuprofen (Advil)? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [November 4, 2006, 11:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-interactions-between-acetaminophen-tylenol-and-ibuprofen-advil/379130 "2006-11-04T23:28:58Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![jayjay](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jayjay/32/6765_2.png) [@jayjay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jayjay)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2006, 11:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-interactions-between-acetaminophen-tylenol-and-ibuprofen-advil/379130/1 "2006-11-04T23:28:58Z")
I currently have a walnut-sized swelling on my jaw from what’s probably an abcess. I have been taking ibuprofen because I don’t want to run the risk of overdosing on acetaminophen (very bad for your liver). But in the last half-hour the swelling has gotten worse. I last took ibuprofen about 2 1/2 hours ago. I want to take some acetaminophen in the hopes that it will make the swelling go down (on a related note, do I NEED to take the acetominophen or is ibuprofen an anti-inflammatory, too?). Would it be safe to take the aceto now or should I wait a while until the ibuprofen is out of my system? (I KNOW I should be sitting in a dentist’s chair right now, but it’s Saturday night, and I can’t find my insurance card, and I can’t afford to pay out-of-pocket for treatment at the moment, so I’m basically throwing painkillers at it and hoping my immune system will beat it down) ---
**Author:** ![KarlGauss](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/karlgauss/32/3713_2.png) [@KarlGauss](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KarlGauss)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2006, 11:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-interactions-between-acetaminophen-tylenol-and-ibuprofen-advil/379130/2 "2006-11-04T23:36:16Z")
[QUOTE=jayjay] Would it be safe to take the aceto now or should I wait a while until the ibuprofen is out of my system? [/QUOTE] Here’s [a neat site](http://www.drugdigest.org/DD/Interaction/ChooseDrugs) for your, and related, questions. In short, the answer to your question is ‘no’. ---
**Author:** ![Antigen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/848f3c/32.png) [@Antigen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Antigen)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2006, 1:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-interactions-between-acetaminophen-tylenol-and-ibuprofen-advil/379130/3 "2006-11-05T01:40:51Z")
Ibuprofen is an anti-inflammatory. Acetaminophen, however, is _not_. So you’re probably better off sticking to the ibuprofen for now, if you’re hoping to keep the swelling down a little. But get to a dentist ASAP. Abscesses are a bitch. ---
**Author:** ![Napier](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ce73a5/32.png) [@Napier](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Napier)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2006, 2:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-interactions-between-acetaminophen-tylenol-and-ibuprofen-advil/379130/4 "2006-11-05T02:18:47Z")
Though on the other hand ibuprofen interferes with blood clotting and could delay when you could get surgery, if it’s needed. I read somewhere that it is much harder for your liver to clear acetominophen and ibuprofen together than it is to clear either one. Also acetominophen’s been getting some bad press for liver damage (though that’s probably overblown for most users). Would it help to put lidocane or similar stuff on your gums? You can do all of that you want, and you can combine it with oral meds. ---
**Author:** ![KarlGauss](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/karlgauss/32/3713_2.png) [@KarlGauss](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KarlGauss)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2006, 2:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-interactions-between-acetaminophen-tylenol-and-ibuprofen-advil/379130/5 "2006-11-05T02:45:55Z")
[QUOTE=Napier] I read somewhere that it is much harder for your liver to clear acetominophen and ibuprofen together than it is to clear either one. [/QUOTE] No, I don’t think so. In fact, that’s exactly the type of interaction that can cause people a lot of trouble. It’s checked for in [the link I posted above](http://www.drugdigest.org/DD/Interaction/ChooseDrugs). And, since it’s always a good idea to have some redundancy in this type of thing, [here’s a link](http://www.drugs.com/drug_interactions.html) to another nice drug interaction checker. ---
**Author:** ![jayjay](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jayjay/32/6765_2.png) [@jayjay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jayjay)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2006, 2:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-interactions-between-acetaminophen-tylenol-and-ibuprofen-advil/379130/6 "2006-11-05T02:47:23Z")
[QUOTE=Napier] Would it help to put lidocane or similar stuff on your gums? You can do all of that you want, and you can combine it with oral meds. [/QUOTE] I do have Anbesol, and I’m using it occasionally (usually as an extra measure just before bed), but the taste is horrible. I did wait until the ibuprof cleared (6 hours, the recommended time between doses) to take the aceto, though… ---
**Author:** ![ethelbert](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/958977/32.png) [@ethelbert](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ethelbert)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2006, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-interactions-between-acetaminophen-tylenol-and-ibuprofen-advil/379130/7 "2006-11-05T15:56:31Z")
One thing that I have found is that while ibuprofen works best for most pain, when I have dental pain nothing works better than plain old aspirin. YMMV (anD IANAD). ---
**Author:** ![Squink](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b5e925/32.png) [@Squink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Squink)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2006, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-interactions-between-acetaminophen-tylenol-and-ibuprofen-advil/379130/8 "2006-11-05T16:13:36Z")
[QUOTE=KarlGauss] No, I don’t think so. In fact, that’s exactly the type of interaction that can cause people a lot of trouble. [/QUOTE] I checked around in the cytochrome literature yesterday, and it seems that acetaminophen and ibuprofen are metabolized through _different_ subsets of liver P-450’s. That’s consistant with there being no interactions between the two. ---
**Author:** ![mnemosyne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c4cdca/32.png) [@mnemosyne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mnemosyne)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2006, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-interactions-between-acetaminophen-tylenol-and-ibuprofen-advil/379130/9 "2006-11-05T16:46:00Z")
Post-surgery for a severely dislocated wrist, my husband was actually prescribed both acetaminophen (in the form of Tylenol 3s) and ibuprofen, and was instructed to take them at 4 hour intervals, offset by 2 hours for each pill (that is, if he took the T-3, then 2 hours later he took the ibuprofen, then two hours after that the T-3 again and so on). My sister was prescribed something similar for pain associated with her arthritis and a pancreatis attack since they took her off her regular meds to try and treat her pancreas. My understanding is that it is a quite common combo of relatively safe (or at least well understood) medications. ---
**Author:** ![JustAnotherGeek](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/58f4c7/32.png) [@JustAnotherGeek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JustAnotherGeek)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2006, 4:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-interactions-between-acetaminophen-tylenol-and-ibuprofen-advil/379130/10 "2006-11-05T16:55:17Z")
I know that the plural of ‘Anecdote’ is not ‘Data’, but… for what it’s worth, I was once prescribed a regimine of alternating Advil and Tylenol at their maximum doses. (I.e. Take the dose of Tylenol, then, half-way through that dose’s period, take a dose of Advil.) Standard disclaimer: IANAD; you should go see one; anyone taking medical advice and/or just plain ole medical information on a message board should take it all with several grains of salt, and the advice of a medical professional who can actually see you and all of your symptoms. ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2006, 5:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-interactions-between-acetaminophen-tylenol-and-ibuprofen-advil/379130/11 "2006-11-05T17:18:58Z")
What **KarlGauss** said and linked to. It’s fine to alternate these meds for a time. Also, be advised that if you want to use Ibuprofen and other NSAIDS for the purposes of fighting inflammation, you need to take it regularly, around the clock, in adequate doses, for at least a week to see a significant effect. Otherwise, studies have shown APAP and NSAIDS to work about equally well to relieve pain, overall. If you find something that seems to work better for you, be it APAP or an NSAID, hey, go with it.