Ibuprofen

Ibuprofen is an over-the-counter nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug. According to Wikipedia, NSAIDs (Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs) are used to relieve the pain and inflammation of rheumatoid arthritis and other acute or chronic conditions. Ibuprofen and aspirin are among the NSAIDs that have become accepted as relatively safe and are available without prescription.

Ibuprofen is believed to work through inhibition of cyclooxygenase (COX, PTGS2), thus inhibiting prostaglandin synthesis.

A recent study concludes that some NSAIDs (most notably ibuprofen) may protect against Alzheimer's disease (AD). Compared with no NSAID use, the adjusted odds ratios for AD among ibuprofen users decreased from 1.03 (1.00-1.06) to 0.56 (0.42-0.75) for >5 years of use (0.68-0.85).

However, carriers of CYP2C8 and CYP2C9 risk alleles may be poorer metabolisers of NSAIDs such as Ibuprofen and have a risk of GI bleeding: see rs1799853 and rs10509681 SNP pages.

• [PMID 19422321] Genetically based impairment in CYP2C8- and CYP2C9-dependent NSAID metabolism as a risk factor for gastrointestinal bleeding: is a combination of pharmacogenomics and metabolomics required to improve personalized medicine?
• [PMID 18216720] PharmGKB summary: very important pharmacogene information for cytochrome P450, family 2, subfamily C, polypeptide 8