Use of Common Pain Relievers
8-Mar-2007
Use of Common Pain Relievers Associated with Increased Risk of Elevated
Blood Pressure in Men
March 2007: Men who regularly take commonly available and widely used
pain relievers may have an increased risk of high blood pressure
compared with those who do not use these medications, according to a
report in the Feb. 26 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine, one of the
JAMA/Archives journals.
Acetaminophen, ibuprofen and aspirin are among the most commonly used
drugs in the United States, according to background information in the
article. Two large studies have recently suggested that pain-relieving
medications (analgesics) may be associated with an increased risk of
hypertension (high blood pressure) in women. However, the association
has not been extensively studied in men.
John P. Forman, M.Sc., M.D., of Brigham and Women�s Hospital and Harvard
Medical School, Boston, and colleagues followed a total of 16,031 male
health professionals (average age 64.6 years) who did not have a history
of high blood pressure. The men were asked in 2000 and again in 2002
about whether and how often they used three types of pain relievers:
acetaminophen, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs, which
include ibuprofen and naproxen) and aspirin. They were also asked to
report if their physician had diagnosed them with hypertension.
Over four years of follow-up, 1,968 men developed hypertension. Compared
with men who did not take analgesics, those who took acetaminophen six
or seven days a week had a 34 percent higher risk of hypertension. Those
who took NSAIDs six or seven days a week had a 38 percent higher risk
and those who took aspirin six or seven days a week had a 26 percent
higher risk.
The researchers also looked at the total number of pain-relieving pills
men took each week, regardless of type. Compared with men who took no
pills, those who took 15 or more pills each week had a 48 percent higher
risk of hypertension.
All three types of analgesics may inhibit the effects of chemicals that
relax the blood vessels, decreasing blood pressure, the authors suggest.
Acetaminophen also may impair cell functioning through high levels of
oxygen (oxidative stress) or reduce the proper functioning of blood
vessel lining.
"These data add further support to the hypothesis that non-narcotic
analgesics independently elevate the risk of hypertension," the authors
write. "Given their common consumption and the high prevalence of
hypertension, our results may have substantial public health
implications and suggest that these agents be used with greater caution.
The contribution of non-narcotic analgesics to the hypertension disease
burden merits further study."
(Arch Intern Med. 2007;167:394-399)
This study was supported by a scientist development grant from the
American Heart Association and by grants from the National Institutes of
Health.