Painkillers 'could increase risk' of heart problems

Painkillers have been found to increase the chance of heart problems by a small amount for patients on high doses, research has shown.

Higher dosage of some non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), such as diclofenac and ibuprofen increases the likelihood of having a heart attack or a stroke, researchers from the University of Oxford said.

The research was based on data from outcomes of more than 353,000 patients and focuses on prolonged usage of the drugs in high doses.

The research found that for every 1,000 people with a moderate risk of heart disease allocated to one year of treatment with high-dose diclofenac (150mg daily) or ibuprofen (2400mg daily), about three would experience an avoidable heart attack, of which one would be fatal.