# Why no oral anti-itch medications? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [February 12, 2021, 1:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-oral-anti-itch-medications/932718 "2021-02-12T01:52:36Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2021, 1:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-oral-anti-itch-medications/932718/21 "2021-02-13T13:43:39Z")
> [@Babale](#): > > > [@CookingWithGas](#): > > > > And yet nobody seems to worry about this when they take pain medication > > Depending on the underlying cause, there may not BE a treatment; or treatment may have already been done by the pain remains. Most of the common over-the-counter pain meds are also anti-inflammatory, and can help the root cause of musculoskeletal pain. I was surprised, as a young adult, when a doctor I’d gone to for knee pain told me to take aspirin every day for a week, whether the knee hurt or not, to reduce the swelling so the knee could heal. ---
**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:** [February 13, 2021, 2:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-oral-anti-itch-medications/932718/22 "2021-02-13T14:46:58Z")
> [@puzzlegal](#): > > I was surprised, as a young adult, when a doctor I’d gone to for knee pain told me to take aspirin every day for a week, whether the knee hurt or not, to reduce the swelling so the knee could heal. that is surprising, since a single aspirin tablet a day is not enough to reduce inflammation. NSAIDs like aspirin, ibuprofen, naproxen, meloxicam, etc. are indeed anti-inflammatory, but only if taken at a high enough dose for a long enough time. Ibuprofen will reduce inflammation if 800 mg is taken 3 x a day for at least 2-3 weeks. Naproxen should be given at 500 mg a day for that duration, Meloxicam requires 15 mg a day for at least that long. Aspirin requires such a high dose to reduce inflammation that most people experience side effects like stomach upset or tinnitus before they get reduced swelling on it. ---
**Author:** ![Napier](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ce73a5/32.png) [@Napier](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Napier)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2021, 3:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-oral-anti-itch-medications/932718/23 "2021-02-13T15:30:51Z")
In high school about 1973 I had some kind of small, non-reddish, bumpy rash that kept itching like crazy. I went to a doctor about it and he gave me pills. They were quite small, gray, spherical. I’ve always wondered what they were, and wondered if they were placebos. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2021, 3:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-oral-anti-itch-medications/932718/24 "2021-02-13T15:55:19Z")
> [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](#): > > that is surprising, since a single aspirin tablet a day is not enough to reduce inflammation. I said, “aspirin”, not “an aspirin”. And it was a fairly high dose, and the doctor talked to me about watching for stomach upset and tinnitus. I think that was right before Ibuprofen became OTC. At any rate, I remember discussing other nsaids he might prescribe. But I was young and had never had stomach upset from aspirin. And it’s possible it was two weeks, i know it seemed like a long time. It worked, fwiw, but since then when I’ve wanted to control knee pain I have used ibuprofen or naproxen. ---
**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:** [February 13, 2021, 4:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-oral-anti-itch-medications/932718/25 "2021-02-13T16:03:07Z")
> [@puzzlegal](#): > > I said, “aspirin”, not “an aspirin”. And it was a fairly high dose 2 tabs 4 to 6 times a day would work to fight inflammation, for sure. ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [February 15, 2021, 3:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-oral-anti-itch-medications/932718/26 "2021-02-15T03:27:43Z")
They also used fever cabinets, which had their own set of dangers. The doctor who discovered that high fevers could cure syphilis won a Nobel Prize, which was appropriate for the times. > **[Pyrotherapy](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pyrotherapy)** > > Pages for logged out editors learn more > > Pyrotherapy (artificial fever) is a method of treatment by raising the body temperature or sustaining an elevated body temperature using a fever. In general, the body temperature was maintained at 41 °C (105 °F). Many diseases were treated by this method in the first half of the 20th century. In general, it was done by exposing the patient to hot baths, warm air, or (electric) blankets. The technique reached its peak of sophistication in the early... ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [February 15, 2021, 3:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-oral-anti-itch-medications/932718/27 "2021-02-15T03:32:23Z")
I can almost guarantee that you were given Sparine (promazine) which at that time was used extensively as an antihistamine, and also for psychiatric ailments and interestingly for migraine treatment and prophylaxis. It’s no longer marketed for human use, although Wiki says it’s sometimes used to sedate horses. > **[Promazine](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Promazine)** > > Pages for logged out editors learn more > > Promazine (brand name Sparine among others), is used as a short-term add-on treatment for psychomotor agitation. Its approved uses in people is limited, but is used as a tranquilizer in veterinary medicine. It has weak antipsychotic effects but is generally not used to treat psychoses. > It acts similar to chlorpromazine and causes sedation. It has predominantly anticholinergic side effects, though extrapyramidal side effects are not uncommon. It b... IIRC, its main hazard, and the reason its use fell off, was because of a slight risk of agranulocytosis (not making enough white blood cells) and safer drugs were available which did the same things. I do recall dispensing it a couple times, which is how I knew what the tablets looked like. ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [February 15, 2021, 3:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-oral-anti-itch-medications/932718/28 "2021-02-15T03:35:27Z")
I see “Pinetarsol” available for purchase on Amazon. Pine tar is definitely an old-fashioned treatment for psoriasis. > **[Amazon.com: Pinetarsol Gel Wash 100g, Relieves Inflammed & Itchy Skin, Soap...](https://www.amazon.com/Pinetarsol-Wash-Relieves-Inflammed-Itchy/dp/B01FQBPGF6)** > > Amazon.com: Pinetarsol Gel Wash 100g, Relieves Inflammed & Itchy Skin, Soap Free (Threadjack: Because I haven’t practiced since 2012, I’m thinking about not renewing my licenses when they come due next year. Maybe I should after all.) ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [February 15, 2021, 3:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-oral-anti-itch-medications/932718/29 "2021-02-15T03:38:20Z")
And it would probably cause tinnitus, vertigo, and bleeding issues! More than once, an elderly grandparent would stop by the grocery store pharmacy counter and tell me that the aspirin was for their grandchild they were babysitting who was running a fever, and get a little miffed when I refused to sell it to them, and instead recommend acetaminophen (liquid ibuprofen and naproxen were still RX-only). My parents gave me aspirin too, but that’s just because we didn’t know about Reye’s Syndrome, which was and is extremely rare, but devastating when it happens. ---
**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:** [February 15, 2021, 1:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-oral-anti-itch-medications/932718/30 "2021-02-15T13:15:37Z")
> [@nearwildheaven](#): > > And it would probably cause tinnitus, vertigo, and bleeding issues! Yes, I mentioned that in my original post on the subject. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-oral-anti-itch-medications/932718.md?page=1)