European Medicines Agency to Weigh Benefits and Risks of Painkillers
The drug regulators in Europe are in the process of launching a new review about the safety of the commonly used painkillers. This is being done in the light of freshly found evidences that some of the most common painkillers can pose risks to the health of the heart.
The European Medicines Agency, five years ago, had concluded the balance of the benefit and the risks of non-selective non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) were positive. However, after that many studies on cardiovascular safety have been conducted and have been publishes. On Friday, the European Medicines Agency announced that once again its experts would weigh all the evidences that are available and clarify whether they need to make any changes or updates in the opinion that they have issued in the year 2006. In the year 2004, Merck & Co’s selective COX-2 inhibitor Vioxx was withdrawn from the market.
The reason behind its withdrawal was the heart risks that it posed. There are also worries about the potential risks that common drugs like ibuprofen, naproxen or aspirin pose. NSAIDs are very common in a wide range of over the counter medicines which include Bayer’s Aleve and Aspirin branded products. These drugs are very commonly used by patients of osteoarthritis and those who have other
painful conditions to manage the pain. After some studies showed evidences of heart risks associated with painkillers, the patients were advised to consult their doctors before they use some painkiller. Some of the studies had also concluded that risks that these painkillers posed to healthy people were very low. So it was advised that the patients who were being administered with these painkillers should not stop using them but must consult their doctors to find if they were at any risks because of the painkillers.
The topic about their safety has been very controversial. It has been debated since a long time. Various studies have been conducted but they have failed to give any clear results. Keeping in view the evidences that have been brought out
by many of the studies that were conducted in regard of the risks posed by pain killers the European Medicines Agency has decided to review its opinion. The experts of the agency will go through all the evidences and will then conclude
whether the balance between the benefits and the risks of the most commonly used painkillers is actually positive or not.
