NSAIDs and cardiovascular risk: An examination of sales and Essential Medicines Lists in low-, middle-, and high-income countries

Source: PLoS Medicine Area: News It is known that certain non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) increase the risk of myocardial infarction and stroke and should be avoided in patients at high risk of cardiovascular events. A study, published in PLoS medicine, investigated the extent to which evidence on cardiovascular risk with NSAIDs has translated into guidance and sales in 15 countries.   The authors identified that three drugs (rofecoxib, diclofenac, and etoricoxib) ranked consistently highest in terms of cardiovascular risk compared with nonuse and naproxen was associated with a low risk. Diclofenac was listed on 74 national Essential Medicines Lists (EML) and naproxen was listed on 27. Diclofenac and etoricoxib accounted for one-third of total NSAID usage across the 15 countries which did not vary between low- and high-income countries.   The authors commented that listing of NSAIDs on national EMLs should take account of cardiovascular risk with preference given to low-risk ...
Source: NeLM - Cardiovascular Medicine - Category: Cardiology Source Type: news