NEW
YORK (Reuters Health) - The risk of developing kidney failure
is increased among patients who use nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory
drugs (NSAIDs), such as Motrin (ibuprofen) or aspirin, according
to report from Spain. The risk is heightened in patients with
high blood pressure or heart failure.
Dr.
Consuelo Huerta, from Centro Espanol de Investigacion Farmacoepidemiologica,
Madrid, and colleagues used the General Practice Research
Database from the United Kingdom to assess the risk for nonfatal
kidney failure associated with NSAID use.
As
reported in the American Journal of Kidney Diseases, the analysis
included 103 patients with kidney failure and 5,000 subjects
without kidney problems.
NSAID
use tripled the risk of kidney failure compared with nonuse,
Huerta told Reuters Health. Still, the risk of kidney failure
in NSAID users was very small and returned to normal when
the drug was stopped.
The
investigators found that a history of heart failure, high
blood pressure, diabetes, and hospitalizations in the previous
year were associated with a greater risk for kidney failure.
The associated risk was increased further when diuretics (water
pills) and heart drugs called calcium channel blockers were
used.
SOURCE:
American Journal of Kidney Diseases, March 2005.
