Celecoxib, by Pfizer.

Celebrex is a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) that is used to relieve pain, tenderness, swelling and stiffness caused by osteoarthritis (arthritis caused by a breakdown of the lining of the joints), rheumatoid arthritis (arthritis caused by swelling of the lining of the joints), and ankylosing spondylitis (arthritis that mainly affects the spine). Celebrex is also used to treat painful menstrual periods and pain from other causes. It is also used with surgery and other treatments to reduce the number of polyps (abnormal growths) in the colon (large intestine) and rectum in patients with familial adenomatous polyposis (a condition in which hundreds or thousands of polyps form in the colon and cancer may develop). Celecoxib is in a class of NSAIDs called COX-2 inhibitors.

This medicine works by stopping the body's production of a substance that causes pain and inflammation by preventing the production of irritant chemicals that cause pain and inflammation in the body. It is blocking the enzyme in your body that makes prostaglandins. Decreasing prostaglandins helps to reduce pain and swelling. It is a member of a new class of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) called COX-2 inhibitors. Like older NSAIDs, Celebrex is believed to fight pain and inflammation by inhibiting the effect of a natural enzyme called COX-2. Unlike the older medications, however, it does not interfere with a similar substance, called COX-1, which exerts a protective effect on the lining of the stomach. Therefore, Celebrex may be less likely to cause the bleeding and ulcers that sometimes accompany sustained use of the older NSAIDs.

Celebrex has also been found to reduce the number of colorectal polyps (growths in the wall of the lower intestine and rectum) in people who suffer from the condition called familial adenomatous polyposis (FAP), an inherited tendency to develop large numbers of colorectal polyps that eventually become cancerous. Celecoxib does not prevent the progression of either type of arthritis. It reduces only the symptoms and signs of arthritis.

Celebrex is the first of a new class of drugs called COX-2 inhibitors, often promoted as "super-aspirins." By selectively blocking only COX-2, they are somewhat easier on the stomach than most anti-inflammatory medications.