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Painkillers might lead to stomach bleeding

Prolonged use of aspirin or NSAIDs have attributed to one third of all hospitalisations and deaths related to gastrointestinal bleeding.

Painkillers might lead to stomach bleeding

Prolonged use of aspirin or nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory agents (NSAIDs) painkillers like ibuprofen have attributed to approximately one third of all hospitalisations and deaths related to gastrointestinal bleeding. Moreover, up to one third of these painkiller-related incidents may be due to low-dose aspirin. Researchers from the University Hospital in Zaragoza, evaluated data from 26 Spanish hospitals on hospitalisations related to peptic-ulcer disease or complications such as bleeding or perforation, as well as drug use during the month prior to hospitalisation. A total of 8010 serious gastrointestinal bleeding events were reported, among which, the mortality rate was 5.7 percent. The proportion of complications and deaths attributed to NSAID and aspirin use was 36.3 percent. They also note that nearly 90 percent of deaths occurred in patients older than 60 years of age. To estimate the impact of aspirin and NSAID use on the general population of Spain, researchers obtained the data from 197 hospitals representative of all the hospitals in the Spanish National Health System. The results suggest that the death rate resulting from NSAID or aspirin-related gastrointestinal complications were between 21 and 25 cases per million inhabitants. This translates to about 15 such deaths for every 100,000 users of aspirin or NSAIDs. These results highlight the importance of taking greater steps to research new and better alternatives to treat pain and inflammation in the elderly, to heighten physician and public awareness of the associated problems of NSAID therapy, and to educate them on the use of appropriate prevention strategies.
American Journal of Gastroenterology,
August 2005
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