A double-blind trial of flurbiprofen and aspirin in soft-tissue trauma

A double-blind trial of flurbiprofen (150 mg daily) and aspirin (3.6 g daily) for six days was carried out in 52 soft-tissue injuries in 28 professional footballers. An analysis of daily pain scores in both injury categories (trauma and sprains) showed that players taking flurbiprofen had significantly lower pain scores from day 2 onwards compared to the aspirin group (P less than 0.01), the effect being more marked in the trauma subgroup. Flurbiprofen was significantly better than aspirin in reducing the time taken to achieve both training and match fitness, and 65% of the players taking flurbiprofen were able to train within three days of injury compared to 35% taking aspirin (P less than 0.05). The possible effects of both anti-inflammatory agents on prostaglandin metabolism are discussed, and their role in soft-tissue trauma outlined.