Meds for joints when you have stomach issues?

First of all your sarcoilitis is because of your UC. Although, you should take the meds, PT is necessary.

Never ever touch any kind of **profen (Ibuprofen/ketoprofen etc.) Actually, Celebrex (how much do you take?) is your best bet because it will (most likely) not put you in flare because it is primarily COX-2 inhibitor, others primarily act via COX-1 and that leads to flare.

If I were you, I would alternate between Celebrex and Ralefen (Nabumetone 750mg). I have been taking Nabumetone for a little over a year (about 1X/week) and so far it has not put me in flare. I am suggesting this alternating strategy to avoid /delay side effects(gastric bleeding and similar) from regular use of one drug.
You could also give a try to Meloxicam.
Have you considered using Prilosec OTC or Prevacid with Celebrex to see if thats the culprit?


Could you also talk to your GI and rheumy about you getting on Sulfasalzine (If you are a male planning on having a kid, ignore this option. AFAIK, this significantly affects sperms. I don't know about female side effects).

You can get a SI belt. You can find a good one online. I've not tried it personally but some people on the chronic pain forum recommended it. This belt is worn around the hips and it limits the free movement which in turn can help alleviate the pain.

Besides my UC I also have stomach issues so any sort of NSAID is a major major no-no for me. I take Tylonel arthritis. It only takes the edge off. But I also avoid standing for long periods or walking. Any chore that requires bending I hand off to someone else. Ice packs can do wonders too. I did PT in the past so I learned how to stretch properly and help strengthen my back muscles. The stronger the core muscles are, the less strain it is on the SI joint.

Thanks for the replies.

deltaforce, the normal dose for celebrex is 2x/day.  I initially took it only when needed, but then increased it to 1x/day as my joint issues were getting worse.  Funny enough, my GI actually prescribed Tecta with my stomach issues (just for 1 week), which I believe is like Prilosec, but was never told to take it when taking celebrex.  As for sulfasalzine, I am female with 2 young kids but family is done so no issue with that respect.  Will look up these meds.  Thx!

kazbern, I was told that the sacroiliitis is related to my UC..or so they suspect.  Good to hear the belt helps.  Do you still run?  What about walking?  I recently got myself a treadmill and with the celebrex, was managing it ok (walking only!).  But since stopping the celebrex, I definitely feel my SI joints.

Red, I've tried a belt and finds it does nothing...although who knows, maybe there are better ones.  Yeah, I'll take tylenol, but of course it only masks the pain (and in flare up mode of shooting pain, does nothing) as oppposed to fights the inflammation.  I'm the same as you and cannot stand for long periods of time...but for me, worse is sitting for long periods of time.  In fact, next week i have two 2hr meeting and iwll have to find a spot at the back where I can stand.  Yeah, I also tried physio and TBH, need to keep it up more.  I  do the stretches after exercise, but should be doing the core exercises more.  Never the less, even when i did them for months for 30min each night, it still didn't stop my issues.