People who have coronary artery disease, high blood pressure or have suffered a stroke are at great risk when it comes to popular pain relievers. It seems that for this range of pills, the effects on the heart were never studied. The FDA is now focusing on increasing the strength of warning related to analysis of observational studies on pain relievers.
Widely use painkillers heighten the risk of heart attack and stroke. The range of pills includes Motrin IB, Aleve and Celebrex. Experts declare that there is an evidence of risk in small amounts, related to the drugs known as non-aspirin, nonsteroidal and anti-inflammatory medication. People are warned against long-term use of this variety of treatments, as the side effects can seriously harm heart functions.
There are no entirely safe pain relievers, but some of them are more dangerous than others. Each and every range or type of medication offers a variety of side effects, from a simple nausea to more delicate problems, related to our vital functions.
However, the risk to develop heart attack or stroke from painkillers is extremely small compared to other risk factors such as smoking, obesity, inappropriate diets, stress or uncontrolled high blood pressure. Everything above combined though, can seriously increase the risks of heart disease.
The FDA takes action by asking drug manufacturers to modify the labels, in order to efficiently reflect new evidence that this range of medication indeed increases the risk of heart attack and stroke right after the patients first started taking them. Even though the danger is higher for people who already experience heart disease, those who have never had heart problems are exposed as well, but to a smaller extent.
To be more specific, over the counter medication, namely those that are most easy to obtain and have the lowest doses of active substance as well, increase risk of heart attack by about 10%. Low-dose prescription treatments increase the risk by 20% and high level dose treatments heighten the risk to 50%. However, the estimations are highly variable, as the threat for the over-the-counter medication can range from zero to 20%.
The information is a bit unclear, as we are not advised abut which drug is safer compared to others, or whether there is a safe minimum dose or minimum duration of exposure, or whether some communities might be less vulnerable. The only steady information addresses people over 65 with a previous history of heart disease. They are strongly advised to keep away from painkillers.
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