NEW YORK (Reuters) -- Short-term use of the pain medication naproxen at over-the-counter doses may substantially increase the number of people hospitalized each year for gastrointestinal bleeding, new research suggests.
A study comparing naproxen with ibuprofen -- another widely used nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) -- revealed that use of naproxen was associated with twice the likelihood of serious intestinal bleeding. But a report of the findings in the Archives of Internal Medicine notes that the risk associated with either drug for a single patient is extremely low -- less than one half of one percent.
Researchers led by Dr. Brian L. Strom of the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia searched 10 years of Medicaid records, identifying more than 377,000 people who received prescriptions for either painkiller. Of these, 59 were identified who had been hospitalized with upper gastrointestinal (GI) tract bleeding within two weeks of receiving their prescription.
Excluded from the study were people who had taken the drugs at high doses, for long periods, or for chronic illnesses. Thus, the researchers were able to approximate short-term naproxen and ibuprofen use at doses equivalent to those recommended in over-the-counter use.
The researchers calculated that 0.026% of the naproxen group and 0.012% of those who used ibuprofen had been hospitalized for GI bleeding.
"However, in light of the widespread use of (naproxen and ibuprofen), the small absolute difference between these drugs may result in a substantial number of cases of (upper GI tract bleeding) annually," the researchers conclude.
Naproxen and ibuprofen are NSAIDs used by millions of people worldwide to alleviate the pain of headache, menstrual cramps, muscle aches, and arthritis.
SOURCE: Archives of Internal Medicine (1997;157:2626-2631)
