Safety warnings and messages for medicines
Hull York Medical School has led an international review which reports that the use of popular non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, such as diclofenac can increase the risk of heart attack or stroke by a third.
Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) form an extremely important and widely-used group of medicines, for the treatment of arthritis and many other painful conditions, including headache, fever, and minor ailments. For most patients the risks of side effects are outweighed by the benefits of treatment.
The findings of this study are not new; an increase in risk of heart attack and stroke with some NSAIDs has been well recognised for some years, particularly with long-term use of high doses and in patients who are already at high risk. The safety profile of all NSAIDs, and in particular their possible association with adverse cardiovascular effects, such as heart attack or stroke, has been carefully evaluated by the MHRA, on many occasions, as new data has become available. Clear information about the risk of heart problems, along with information about those patient groups in which NSAIDs either should not be used (such as those with severe heart failure) or used with caution, are contained in the information for healthcare professionals and the leaflet for patients that accompanies the medicine.
To minimise the risk of side effects, our advice remains that all NSAIDs should be used for the shortest time and at the lowest dose necessary to control symptoms. People should not stop taking their NSAID medicine, but if they have any questions about their treatment they should speak to their doctor or pharmacist.
The MHRA keeps the safety of NSAIDs under close review and will carefully evaluate any important new data to determine whether it has any implications for patient safety and will take any action necessary to minimise the risk to patients. .
