Common Pain Relievers Linked to Heart Deaths

(CBS)  For the first time, some commonly-used pain relievers have been linked by significant clinical evidence to a higher risk of heart-related deaths in otherwise healthy people.

The nine-year Danish study looked at non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, including ibuprofen, which was associated with a 29 percent greater risk of fatal or non-fatal stroke.

The group of drugs examined is known as NSAIDs, which are commonly prescribed to people suffering from arthritis or inflammation due to short-term conditions.

The study, published in the American Heart Association's journal, "Cardiovascular Quality and Outcomes," focused on the drugs ibuprofen, diclofenac, rofecoxib, celecoxib and naproxen.

Study authors said they had been unable to determine the risks of celecoxib based on the results of their research. Naproxen - sold over the counter under brand names including "Alleve," was actually linked to a decreased risk in heart failures.

"Even though the frequency of these effects is quite low, they are still important," said Emil Loldrup Fosbøl, the study's author. "People should at a minimum be aware that this is a problem."

For individuals taking NSAIDs who are at a greater risk of stroke, the American Heart Association's advice is "a stepped-care approach to pain management," which recommends doctors only opt for the higher-risk medications after first demonstrating lower-risk drugs are ineffective.

The study reinforces advice given by the American Heart Association (AHA) in 2007 which advised doctors of a link between NSAIDs and heart failure.

"I find this new study reassuring because it endorses the recommendations we made using a large body of actual clinical evidence," said Elliott M. Antman, a professor at Harvard Medical School and Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston who wrote the AHA statement.

"Doses examined in this new study were very similar to doses that patients are likely to encounter both at the over-the-counter level (OTC) and the prescription level," added Antman. "For patients regularly taking an NSAID now - whether it's a prescription or OTC - it is advisable to discuss with your physician why it was originally recommended or prescribed, whether you need to continue taking it, and at what dose."

[purpleenergy]

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[Foxygirl223]

Wow how weird 3 months ago I took alieve and I felt a heart problem coming on Im glad I stoped taking them

[baileyccc]

I agree with completely with tsigili. Why would anyone take a synthetic poison from a doctor when they can take a natural product that will do the same thing with no side effects? Do your own research people and get on the green bandwagon and not the pharmaceutical bandwagon. posted by baileyccc

[tanana4]

And just where do you think "synthetic" comes from? No one can make anything from nothing. Everything has to come from a natural source. Even "synthetic" like digitalis comes from the foxglove plant. Natural products also carry the hidden dangers of side affects, you are just underestimating the possibility.

[doch48]

A "synthetic" by definition, is never found in nature. It's a substitute for a natural combination. Until proven to have "exactly" the same effects, it IS NOT the same. Yes, it may appear to be better (whatever that means to you in terms of speed, cost, quality) but you better figure the sources for a synthetic might be what was planned all along.

[tsigili]

No one should take any drug, even if it is prescribed by a doctor, without thoroughly researching that drug, to decide for themselves, if they feel safe taking it.

My personal experience says that doctors know far less about the drugs they prescribe, than is prudent, before prescribing them.

[erasmus111]

by tsigili June 9, 2010 10:23 AM EDT
My personal experience says that doctors know far less about the drugs they prescribe, than is prudent, before prescribing them.


The only one that truly know about any drug is the pharmacist.

[dragon8me]

Cannabis is the safest pain reliever. Opiods are also safe and effective if used properly, which is the problem. Too many abuse meds. Why are Americans the most drug abusing country in the world? Mayby it's because we're not happy. We have to work long hours for little pay to buy all the stuff companies tell us we can't live without, forcing us in to never ending debt. We have very little time with our families and we spend our time with the stuff we just gotta have. We have to pay for everything, including clean water, because the stuff coming out of the tap is not fit to drink. We are a society that must work our lives away at jobs we hate if we can find a job at all and pay, pay, pay. We're not happy campers and in the mean time our leaders keep us devided so they can rob us of the little freedom we don't really have because it's been given to the corporations. So we're sold dangerous drugs and kept away from the only safe one because it makes us question why.

[rainbowbrew]

Yes this is great, the FDA is looking out for us again - NOT.

So cannabis helps relieve pain and has not killed a single person in the 5-10,000 years of recorded history. But hey the FDA says it is not effective and very dangerous.

So who is protecting us from the FDA?