[Debbie L.]

Pam, I'd never heard the ibuprofen (or any anti inflammatory) inhibits bone growth. So I googled it, of course (smile).

It seems controversial, showing some inhibition of growth in a highly-controlled and weird study in rabbits, but not in rat femurs, etc. I didn't spend a lot of time looking so there may be human studies I didn't find, but there were articles arguing that the anti inflammatory effects were more important and that it was okay to use.

I have friends who use Tramadol or Ultram, which is described as "narcotic-like". Apparently (from what I've heard from others), it works really well for some and not at all for others (something to do with individual differences in metabolism). So that might be worth a try.

As for the same pain meds making you "increasingly goofy", that is odd. More typically, people adjust to the effects of narcotics over time and also build up tolerances so they need higher doses to get the same effects.

If your surgeon doesn't have help to offer, you could also ask for referral to a pain specialist who would have a lot more ideas.

Good luck, keep us posted.

Debbie Laxague