A comparison of naproxen, indomethacin and acetylsalicylic acid in pain after varicose vein surgery.

Oral naproxen in doses of 500 mg and 750 mg daily was compared with oral indomethacin, 75 mg daily, in a double-blind, completely randomized study of patients with post-operative pain after out-patients varicose vein surgery. Altogether, 120 patients were studied. In the study 750 mg naproxen proved to be equal in respect of analgesic efficacy to 75 mg indomethacin, and it was clearly superior to 1500 mg acetylsalicylic acid. Naproxen, 500 to 750 mg daily, afforded adequate post-operative analgesia in 98% of patients. The side-effects were mild. On the basis of the study, naproxen can be recommended as a pain-relieving drug after minor surgery, particularly when an antiphlogistic effect is also desirable.