Drug Database
IB

ibuprofen (ibuprofen, Nordmark / ibuprofen, Pacific / ibuprofen, Bracco)

✓ Approved

Bracco · PTGS1 · Small Molecule

What is ibuprofen?

ibuprofen is a small molecule developed by Bracco. It is approved for therapeutic indications via oral (po).

Drug Profile

Brand Namesibuprofen, Nordmark, ibuprofen, Pacific, ibuprofen, Bracco
CompanyBracco
Drug ClassSmall Molecule
Molecular TargetPTGS1, PTGS2
RouteOral (PO)
StatusApproved
Sources: ClinicalTrials.gov, Bracco

Mechanism of Action

Molecular Targets

ibuprofen acts on 2 molecular targets:

PTGS1prostaglandin-endoperoxide synthase 1 (COX3, PCOX1)
PTGS2prostaglandin-endoperoxide synthase 2 (GRIPGHS, hCox-2)
Want deeper analysis?Noah AI can explain complex mechanisms and compare to similar drugs.

Therapeutic Indications

ibuprofen is developed for 2 unique indications across 2 therapeutic areas.

Therapeutic AreaConditionPhase
Gastrointestinal disordersAbdominal pain✓ Approved
Hepatobiliary disordersHepatitis✓ Approved

Related Research Articles

PubMedJournal of pain research2026-08-25

Prevalence and Associated Factors of Central Sensitization Among Patients with Chronic Low Back Pain at Mbarara Regional Referral Hospital, Uganda: A Cross-Sectional Study.

Ruyonga Marven Robert MR, Asiimwe Derrick D, Agaba David Collins DC, Nuwahereza Amon A et al.

Chronic low back pain (CLBP) is a leading cause of disability worldwide and is increasingly recognized as a condition influenced by altered central pain processing. Central Sensitization (CS), characterized by amplified nociceptive signaling within the Central Nervous System (CNS), may contribute to persistent pain, disability and poor treatment response in patients with CLBP. Despite the high burden of CLBP in Uganda, there is lack of local epidemiological data on CS. This study determined the prevalence and associated factors of CS among patients with CLBP attending Mbarara Regional Referral Hospital (MRRH). A hospital-based cross-sectional study was conducted among 304 consecutively recruited adults with CLBP attending MRRH between October 2025 and January 2026. CS was assessed using the Central Sensitization Inventory (CSI), with a score ≥40 defining CS. Sociodemographic, clinical, psychological, and lifestyle data were collected using interviewer-administered questionnaires. Modified Poisson regression identified factors independently associated with CS. The mean age of participants was 56.5 ± 16.2 years, and 55.9% were female. The prevalence of CS was 33.9% (n=103; 95% CI: 28.9-39.4). Moderate to severe anxiety (aPR=3.24, 95% CI: 2.27-4.63), depression (aPR=1.63, 95% CI: 1.24-2.16), smoking (aPR=1.41, 95% CI: 1.04-1.91), opioid use (aPR=1.36, 95% CI: 1.02-1.81) and topical analgesics (aPR=1.43, 95% CI: 1.004-2.04) were independently associated with CS. Approximately one-third of patients with CLBP at MRRH exhibited features of CS. CS was associated with psychological distress, smoking, and certain analgesic use patterns. These findings reinforce the need for a biopsychosocial model of care in the assessment and management of CLBP, incorporating evaluation of central pain mechanisms, psychological distress, and other social factors that contribute to pain and disability, while prospective longitudinal studies are needed to clarify temporal relationships and causal pathways.

PMID 42639527
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PubMedCureus2026-08-25

Adolescent Parenthood and Mental Health in South-Western Uganda: Psychosocial Vulnerabilities, Depression Prevalence, and Associated Factors.

Atwiine Scovia S, Nyakato Viola N VN, Atwine Daniel D, Kemigisha Elizabeth E

Background Adolescent parenthood is associated with adverse psychosocial, economic, and mental health outcomes; however, evidence on adolescent parents remains limited. This study investigated these factors among adolescent parents in South-Western Uganda.  Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted among 195 adolescent parents, including 155 (79.5%) adolescent mothers and 40 (20.5%) adolescent fathers in South-Western Uganda. The participants were aged 15-19 years. Data were collected using structured interviewer-administered questionnaires. Depressive symptoms were assessed using the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) with a score ≥10 indicating depressive symptoms, while common mental disorders (CMD) were assessed using the Shona Symptoms Questionnaire 14 (SSQ-14) with a score ≥8 indicating CMDs. Sociodemographic, socioeconomic, psychosocial, and attitude-related information was also collected. Descriptive statistics were used to summarize participant characteristics. Modified Poisson regression with robust standard errors was used to identify factors independently associated with depressive symptoms. Results Participants experienced substantial social and economic vulnerability characterized by school discontinuation, unstable livelihoods, low household assets, food insecurity, and limited support systems. The prevalence of depressive symptoms was 48.2% (n=92), while 72.6% (n=138) screened positive for other common mental disorders. Adolescent mothers had significantly higher depressive symptom prevalence than adolescent fathers (n=79, 52.0% vs n=13, 33.3%; p = 0.048), and severe depressive symptoms were observed only among adolescent mothers. Exposure to violence and mistreatment was common, with many adolescents reporting humiliation, threats, assault, and forced sex/rape. In multivariable analysis, unemployment (adjusted prevalence ratio (aPR) = 2.90, 95% CI: 1.17-7.14), household asset count = 0 (aPR = 2.57, 95% CI: 1.10-6.00), mistreatments by relatives (aPR = 1.52, 95% CI: 1.14-2.02), and mistreatment by neighbours (aPR = 1.43, 95% CI: 1.06-1.95) were independently associated with depressive symptoms. Conclusion Adolescent parents in South-Western Uganda experience a high burden of depressive symptoms and common mental disorders within contexts of poverty, violence, stigma, and limited social support. Adolescent mothers appear particularly vulnerable to severe depressive symptoms and forced sex/rape. Comprehensive adolescent-responsive interventions integrating mental health services, economic empowerment, violence prevention, educational reintegration, and community stigma reduction are urgently needed.

PMID 42639638
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PubMedFrontiers in public health2026-08-25

Admission-cohort differences in physical fitness, weight status, and fitness-standard failure among first-year students at a single vocational college in Shanxi Province, China.

Hong Jing J

Physical fitness surveillance can identify students requiring early support, but evidence from vocational colleges remains limited. This repeated cross-sectional study analysed standardised physical fitness assessment records from 7,163 first-year students in three independent admission cohorts assessed in 2023, 2024, and 2025 at one vocational college in Shanxi Province, China. Official total scores and failure under China's National Student Physical Health Standard were examined using descriptive analyses, quantile regression, logistic regression, and modified Poisson regression. Because BMI contributes directly to the official score, sensitivity analyses used a BMI-free motor-fitness score derived from the six performance-based components. Official failure prevalence was 23.4% in 2023, 17.0% in 2024, and 34.8% in 2025. Compared with 2024, the 2025 cohort had a higher adjusted prevalence of official failure [adjusted prevalence ratio (aPR) 1.80, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.64-1.99]. Median official scores differed modestly, whereas the adjusted 10th- and 25th-percentile scores were lower in 2025, indicating that the difference was concentrated in the lower part of the distribution. Weight-status associations were substantially attenuated after BMI removal, although overweight and obesity remained associated with low BMI-free motor-fitness performance (aPR 1.35, 95% CI 1.27-1.44, and aPR 1.64, 95% CI 1.55-1.74, respectively). Endurance failure was common in both sexes, and the high aggregate muscular strength/endurance failure prevalence was driven largely by male pull-up performance. Official fitness outcomes differed across the three admission cohorts, with the highest failure prevalence in 2025 reflecting lower-tail differences rather than a uniform decline. Weight-status disparities in official outcomes were partly attributable to the BMI component, although lower performance-based fitness persisted among students with overweight and obesity. These institution-specific findings support entry-level surveillance and targeted aerobic and muscular-endurance support but should not be generalised to vocational-college students across China.

PMID 42638721
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PubMedThe Journal of pediatrics2026-08-24

Long-Term Outcomes of Expectant Management Versus Early Ibuprofen for Patent Ductus Arteriosus: 24-Month Follow-Up of the BeNeDuctus Trial.

Apers Wievineke M J WMJ, Hundscheid Tim T, Kooi Elisabeth M W EMW, Onland Wes W et al.

To assess survival and neurodevelopmental outcome at 24 months' corrected age (CA) for participants in the BeNeDuctus trial, comparing expectant management with early ibuprofen treatment in extremely preterm infants. In this international, multicenter trial, extremely preterm infants (<28 weeks' gestation) with echocardiographically confirmed PDA between 24-72 hours postnatal age were randomly assigned to expectant management or early ibuprofen treatment. Follow-up was scheduled at 24 months' CA. The primary endpoint of this follow-up study was survival without neurodevelopmental impairment (Bayley Scales of Infant and Toddler Development III score of ≥85 on cognitive and motor domain). Additional outcomes included were biometry, abnormal neurologic examination, and vision or hearing impairment. Follow-up data were available for 234 of 273 patients (85.7%); 117 patients in each study arm. Assessment of the primary endpoint was available for 200/234 patients (85.5%). Survival without neurodevelopmental impairment did not differ between groups, with 51/104 (49%) in the expectant management group and 47/96 (49%) in the early ibuprofen treatment group (relative risk (RR) 1.00; 95% confidence interval 0.76-1.33). No significant differences were observed in the additional follow-up outcomes. No difference was observed in survival without neurodevelopmental impairment at 24 months' CA between the expectant management and early ibuprofen treatment group in the BeNeDuctus study sample. These results suggest no advantage of routine early ibuprofen treatment for survival and neurodevelopmental outcome.

PMID 42637114
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PubMedPhytomedicine : international journal of phytotherapy and phytopharmacology2026-08-24

Corrigendum to "Quercetin counteracts monosodium glutamate to mitigate immunosuppression in the thymus and spleen via redox-guided cellular signaling" [Phytomedicine. 2024 Apr;126:155226].

Das Debasmita D, Banerjee Arnab A, Manna Krishnendu K, Sarkar Deotima D et al.

PMID 42637583
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PubMedJournal of public health dentistry2026-08-24

Key Predictors of Oral Health Service Utilization Among Working-Age Adults With and Without Depression in the United States.

Amedari McKing Izeiza MI, Heaton Lisa J LJ, Dobbs Thomas T, Grayson Bernadette B et al.

The study aimed to determine the key factors that predict oral health care utilization among persons with and without depression. Data from 17,525 working-age adults from the 2022 National Health Interview Survey were analyzed. Survey-weighted Poisson regression models estimated the population-level associations between sociodemographic factors (e.g., income, education, last medical visit) and a report of no past-year dental visit and Delayed Dental Care due to cost (DDC), while Random Forest (RF) permutation importance quantified each variable's contribution to predictive discrimination for individuals with or without depression. The adjusted prevalence (aPR) of no past-year dental visit and DDC was greater among those with depression compared to those without depression (39.6% vs. 35.3% aPR = 1.12; 95% confidence interval (CI), 1.06 to 1.18) and (26.6% vs. 17.8%, aPR = 1.47, 95% CI, 1.35, 1.59), respectively. Our RF models demonstrated an acceptable range of discrimination for both outcomes (AUC range: 0.67-0.73) across the subgroups by depression status. Income was the most important variable contributing most to all four models' discrimination, regardless of depression status, suggesting a cross-cutting impact on oral health service utilization regardless of depression status. Individuals with depression were less likely to visit the dentist and more likely to report cost-related delayed dental care than those without depression. Further, income was an important factor impacting oral health care-seeking behavior.

PMID 42634107
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