NSAIDs & Heart Disease

[twain]

I've always taken a NSAID (generic Aleve or Motrin) with my interferon shot to help with the side-effects, but recently a new study was released showing a strong link between NSAIDs and heart disease -- even at low dosages.

The only OTC pain-relievers now considered safe are Tylenol and aspirin (which does carry a risk of stomach bleeding.)

You can Google NSAID and heart disease to find out more.

[jreagan70]

The only OTC pain-relievers now considered safe are Tylenol and aspirin (which does carry a risk of stomach bleeding.)

Considered safe by whom?

Tylenol is NOT safe. According to the Mayo Clinic, acetaminophen poisoning is the most common cause of acute liver failure in the United States.

Aspirin isn't particularly safe, either. The risk of bleeding goes beyond just the stomach. Aspirin has been associated with bleeding anywhere in the body, particularly in highly vascular tissues like the brain, retina and kidneys. And the stomach may not just bleed. Aspirin can erode the stomach, causing it to perforate into the body cavity -- not where you want gastric acid to be.

None of our choices are "safe." But at least we get to pick which body part we want to sacrifice to get a benefit somewhere else. I pushed my liver and kidneys to their limits. My liver recovered... my kidneys didn't.

[twain]

Yep.
Every drug has side effects, some more serious than others. Pick your poison. Guess i should have said that Tylenol and aspirin are considered safer than other NSAID's.
I suppose the best thing is not to use any pain-relievers if you can.
I just wanted to alert folks to that new study about NSAID's and heart disease.

[22cyclist]

The point is to take everything in moderation. If you are just taking a couple of Acetomenofen with your shot per day, you are not going to get liver failure. If you take a bottle, then yes, you might.

Same thing with NSAIDS. A couple a day will not hurt you, even a few a day, but a whole bottle is going to damage your heart and blood pressure. If you have a pre-existing heart/BP problem then NSAIDS are not the drugs for you.

Try a baby aspirin or low dose aspirin, or low dose of any of these. You don't have to take 800 mg of ibuprofen with each interferon shot. Try 2-400.

If all else fails, try switching off of interferons if your symptoms are that bad.

There are better drugs for MS out there anyway.

Take care
Lisa