Can ibuprofen cause kidney damage if you take 3 to 4 at a time for headache or other muscle pain Could this be the result of a normal urine culture but w blood in urine?

Answer 1

Stomach bleeding won't cause blood in the urine, however ibuprofen can be very toxic to the kidneys and digestive bleeding is a definite problem. You should never exceed the recommended dosage of any over the counter medicine without consulting your physician. Make sure and always tell your doctor when taking OTC medicines, and if you have blood in your urine, make sure it is being monitored by a physician. Blood in the urine can be a sign of many different things including kidney stone or even a bruised bladder, but it's important to find out why it is there.

Beware of Medication Overuse Headache. This happens when taking pain relief for more than a few days at a time. You should not take pain relief for any reason more than 3 days a week or Medication Overuse Headache can become a problem. Soon the medication actually begins to cause the headache and it becomes very difficult to treat. The only remedy is to withdraw from all pain relief until the headache resolves itself. This can be weeks to months.

If you have a headache that is not responding to otc meds, see a headache specialist. A headache specialist is a neurologist especially trained in headache disorders and treatments.

AnswerIt's very possible that blood in your culture is from stomach bleeding caused by too many ibuprofen. Liquid gels especially need to be taken with a lot of water to help lessen the chances of this. You also should try taking fewer. Don't get in the habit of taking 4 every time. If the headache isn't real bad, just try 1 or 2. The more you take, the less effective they will become eventually. And then you will need 4 just to get rid of a small headache.