Capsaicin to treat coccyx pain

Capsaicin is what makes chillies hot. Two forms are available:

Capsaicin creams

Creams with 0.025 - 0.075% capsaicin can be bought without prescription from pharmacies and used as necessary. Personal experiences of capsaicin creams have been given by Anonymous, Ian and Helen

Capsaicin Patches

High-concentration (8%) capsaicin patches are used in hospitals to treat some painful conditions. These patches are prescription-only, and must be applied by medical personnel. They cause a burning sensation when in place, so the area is treated with cold packs before, during and after treatment to reduce this effect.

A study of the use of these patches (PDF) found that 37% of patients with coccygodynia declared that they were much improved with an average 63% improvement after a one-hour treatment.

Updated 2025-07-13