Techniques of intravital microscopy were used to assess the effect of the nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), indomethacin and ibuprofen, on the microcirculation. Hemodynamics in venules of the rat mesentery were studied in terms of vessel diameter, red blood cell velocity, and leukocyte-endothelium interactions: leukocyte-endothelium adhesion (LEA), white blood cell (WBC) marginating flux, and WBC velocity. Measurements were made during (1) control conditions (topical suffusion with ringer-gelatin drip), (2) topically suffused indomethacin or ibuprofen, (3) an induced inflammatory response (suffusion with the chemoattractant N-Formyl-Methionyl-Leucyl-Phenylalanine (FMLP)), and (4) concomitant suffusion with FMLP and NSAID. Short term topical suffusion (90 sec) with indomethacin and ibuprofen had little or no effect on control hemodynamics. Five-minute suffusions with indomethacin (5 x 10(-5) to 5 x 10(-4) M) significantly increased LEA while ibuprofen (5 x 10(-3) M) significantly decreased LEA. Topical suffusion with the chemotactic agent FMLP induced inflammation and significantly increased LEA in venules. Treatment with indomethacin during induced inflammation had no effect on the inflammatory reaction in terms of the microvascular hemodynamics measured in this study. Treatment with ibuprofen during induced inflammation significantly reduced LEA and increased red blood cell velocity. In conclusion, although both of the NSAIDs studied here are known to block the cyclooxygenase pathway of arachidonic acid metabolism, the actions of indomethacin and ibuprofen on the inflammatory process are very different with an important effect of ibuprofen being to decrease LEA.