What's Better for Pain - Pills or Patches?

Release time：2023-10-31 Click：146

When it comes to managing ongoing pain issues, two common options are medication pills or topical pain relief patches. So what's better for providing pain relief - pills or patches? There are pros and cons to both types of medications.

Pain Relief Patches

Medicated pain relief patches allow for direct delivery of ingredients like lidocaine through the skin.

Benefits of patch medications include:

- Bypass the digestive system and liver metabolization, resulting in fewer side effects compared to oral medications.

- Provide direct, localized pain relief when applied and absorbed through the skin over painful areas.

- Offer consistent 8-12 hours of coverage from a single patch application. Don't require frequent re-dosing like pills.

- Avoid the systemic effects of oral pain medications distributed through the entire body.

- Allow for discreet pain management throughout the day with the patch applied under clothing.

- Lower risk of addiction and drug dependence

The limitations of topical patches are:

- Only treat localized pain where applied

- Can cause minor skin irritation in some users

Oral Pain Pills

Pain pills like ibuprofen, aspirin, and acetaminophen are frequently used for temporary pain relief. These oral medications work systemically, meaning they spread through the bloodstream to reduce inflammation and pain signals throughout the body.