When is anti-inflammatory therapy for period pain recommended for endometriosis?

Endometriosis-related inflammation can contribute to painful periods, pelvic aching, and pain during or after bleeding. Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, often called NSAIDs, reduce the production of substances involved in pain and inflammation. They can ease symptoms but do not remove endometriosis tissue or treat every cause of pelvic pain. Learn more about [Endometriosis](/conditions/endometriosis/).

Ask a clinician or pharmacist which medicine, dose, and timing fit your health history. Treatment may work better when taken at the first sign of pain or bleeding, according to the product instructions. Do not combine NSAIDs or take them with other products containing the same ingredient. Tell your clinician about stomach ulcers, kidney disease, asthma triggered by pain medicines, blood thinners, pregnancy, or plans to conceive. Review [Anti-inflammatory Therapy for Period Pain](/treatments/medical-gynaecology/nsaid-therapy-for-period-pain/) for treatment details.

Arrange a medical review if pain is severe, worsening, newly different, interrupts normal activities, or continues despite treatment. Seek urgent care for sudden intense pelvic pain, fainting, fever, persistent vomiting, very heavy bleeding, or possible pregnancy with pain or bleeding. Black stools, vomiting blood, facial swelling, or breathing difficulty after an NSAID need urgent attention.

Ask whether your symptoms fit endometriosis, when to take the medicine, how long to use it, and what alternatives exist if relief is limited. Ask whether you need a treatment plan addressing endometriosis itself or an evaluation for another pelvic pain cause.