Web Desk(September 1, 2017): Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) such as ibuprofen may raise blood pressure in patients with arthritis, a new study suggests.
“The current findings suggest that the elevated cardiovascular risk with NSAIDs may be partly due to drug-specific increases in blood pressure,” said Dr. Frank.
“Patients with osteoarthritis and arthritis should continue to consult their doctor before taking NSAIDs and clinicians need to weigh the potential hazards of worsening blood pressure control when considering the use of these agents,” Ruschitzka added.
NSAIDs are among the most widely used drugs in the world, with almost 19 percent of Americans routinely using at least one NSAID.
Warnings on the labels of these drugs caution against possible increases in blood pressure, but there is little evidence on the effects of specific drugs, the researchers explained.
Managing high blood pressure in patients with arthritis could prevent more than 70,000 deaths from stroke and 60,000 deaths from heart disease each year, they pointed out.
After four months, the researchers found that celecoxib lowered the patients’ average systolic (top number) blood pressure slightly, but ibuprofen and naproxen increased it by 3.7 mm Hg and 1.6 mm Hg, respectively.
Further analysis revealed that the percentage of patients with normal blood pressure who developed high blood pressure was roughly 23 percent for ibuprofen, 19 percent for naproxen and about 10 percent for celecoxib.
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