Taking nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) — a group of drugs that includes common painkillers like ibuprofen (e.g., Advil, Motrin) — was linked to a higher risk of developing heart failure in certain people with type 2 diabetes, according to a new study presented at the 2022 meeting of the European Society of Cardiology in Barcelona, and described in an article at HealthDay.
Heart failure is the inability of the heart to adequately pump blood throughout the body. It can come on suddenly — known as acute heart failure, which requires emergency medical care — or it can be a chronic condition that is typically treated with medications. People with diabetes — type 1 or type 2 — are at higher risk for heart failure, and the condition may progress more quickly if you have less-than-optimal blood glucose control. On the bright side, available treatments for heart failure have grown more effective in recent years. One drug, Farxiga (dapagliflozin) — which was originally developed as a treatment for type 2 diabetes, but can now be taken for heart failure regardless of diabetes status — has been shown to potentially add years of life in people with heart failure. In addition to optimizing your blood glucose control, certain lifestyle measures — including just drinking coffee — may help reduce your risk for heart failure.
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NSAIDs linked to increased heart failure hospitalization risk
For the latest study, researchers looked at the effects of short-term use of NSAIDs in over 331,000 people with type 2 diabetes in Denmark between 1998 and 2021. These participants had no previous history of heart failure, and were taking a short course of NSAIDs for a variety of health conditions to relieve pain and reduce inflammation. Overall, taking an NSAID increased the risk of hospitalization for heart failure by 43% — a dramatically increased risk, especially given that these participants didn’t have heart failure to begin with.
The risk for hospitalization was even higher for people with type 2 diabetes if they were age 80 or older — in this case, taking an NSAID raised the heart failure hospitalization risk by 78%. People with higher blood glucose levels were also at greater risk for heart failure hospitalization if they took NSAIDs.
Most study participants were not newly diagnosed with type 2 diabetes — only about one in six received their NSAID prescription within a year of their diabetes diagnosis. The most commonly prescribed NSAID in the study was ibuprofen (12% of participants), followed by diclofenac (3% of participants).
The researchers noted that for some people, taking NSAIDs may raise the risk for heart failure by causing fluid retention and affecting the lining of blood vessels in a way that raises blood pressure. For many people, though, these effects may be small enough not to substantially raise the risk for heart failure.
The researchers concluded that extra caution may be warranted when prescribing or taking NSAIDs for people with type 2 diabetes — especially those with higher blood glucose levels. In fact, they wrote, there was no indication that people with diabetes who have normal blood glucose levels are at a higher risk for heart failure hospitalization if they take NSAIDs.
Want to learn more about protecting your heart? Read “Be Heart Smart: Know Your Numbers,” “Does Diabetes Hurt Your Heart?” “Fight Off Heart Disease With These Five Heart-Healthy Foods” and “Lower Your Risk of Heart Disease.”