Diagnosed with costochonritis last november. pain has been on and off. i recently had a flare up and the doctor put me on naproxen 250mg twice daily. i've only been on them a couple of days and they have given me bad stomach pains. is there another pain r

Wrong medicine: NSAIDs such as naproxen are only rarely effective in costochondritis. Taking a proton pump inhibitor such as Prilosec at the same time markedly reduces GI risk. Meloxicam or Celebrex (celecoxib) are significantly less irritating than naproxen. In my experience, agent such as gabapentin work better for this issue than NSAIDs.

Many choices: There are 15 - 20 other medications which can be used. The number of choices depends on where you live. Call your doctor. They should be able to quickly guide you to another choice.

Costochondral injections: Any medication for costochondritis is going to be an anti-inflammatory. Any of these medications can cause stomach upset – the type you are feeling. It may be possible to take stomach protective agent along with these anti-inflammatory medications. Another option is to consider costochondral injections right to the painful area with a very small dose of steroids. This should greatly improve your symptomatology without the G.I. side effects you are experiencing

Naproxen GI upset: Naproxen is upsetting your stomach. It can cause ulcers. Speak with your doctor abut alternate therapy. It may not help costochondritis which can be irritated muscle. Local heat and local analgesic creams or ointments over the tender sites. Sometimes these sites can be injected. We also need to know if there is any systemic association suggesting other ongoing medical problems

Yes: You could try Celebrex (celecoxib) which reportedly causes less G. I. Problems and regardless of the NSAID you should also be on a proton pump inhibitor like prilosec at the same time. You could also try a full dose of acetaminophen. On some hands a steroid injection can help. Not all NSAIDS cause the same G.I. distress so a change to type might help too.