The frequent use of arthritis painkillers has been link to the development of hypertension in women.?Now a new study published in the February 26, 2007 issue of the Archives of Internal Medicine has ...

The frequent use of arthritis painkillers has been link to the development of hypertension in women.?Now a new study published in the February 26, 2007 issue of the Archives of Internal Medicine has demonstrated the same problem may occur in men.

The study analyzed data on 16,031 men who averaged 65 years of age and who did not have hypertension.

Over a four year period, 1.968 of these patients developed hypertension. 燤en who took arthritis pain relievers such as aspirin, acetaminophen (Tylenol), ibuprofen (Motrin), and other non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDS) regularly, meaning 6-7 days per week were more prone to developing high blood pressure than those who did not take these types of medicines.?The risk was increased 26 per cent for aspirin users, 34 per cent for those who took acetaminophen, and 38 per cent for those patients who took NSAIDS. 牋

Males who took arthritis pain medicines of any type fifteen or more times a week had a 48 per cent higher risk of hypertension than those patients who never took these medicines.

(Forman JP, Rimm EB, Curhan GC. Frequency of Analgesic Use and Risk of Hypertension Among Men. Arch Intern Med.?007;167:394-399).

Author抯 note: Along with gastrointestinal complications such as ulcers and bleeding and the increased incidence of cardiovascular events such as heart attacks and stroke, another problem-hypertension- must be considered.?This underscores the need to inform patients of the likely risks and weigh the risks versus the benefits. 燨ne factor that must strongly be considered in the decision-making equation is quality of life.?Arthritis medicines do help with that and can make the difference between a person who is limited to sitting around the living room and one who can get outside and enjoy life.