Consumer Reports Warns Against the Risks of Prescription and Over-The-Counter Painkillers

CR urges U.S. Food and Drug Administration to take stronger steps to reduce the dangers of pain-relief medications

Yonkers, NY – Some pain relief medications can be as addictive as heroin and are rife with deadly side effects.

Every day, 46 people in the U.S. die from legal pain pills and for each death, more than 30 people are admitted to an emergency room because of opioid complications. Consumer Reports has taken a close look at the dangers of prescription and over-the-counter painkillers and is calling on the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to do more to make these drugs safer. [Read more]

American Heart Association says taking painkillers increases death risk, second heart attacks in survivors

The higher risk persists for at least five years.

Dallas, TX – Heart attack survivors who take common painkillers after a heart attack have a higher long-term risk of dying or having a second heart attack, according to a new study published in Circulation, an American Heart Association journal.

The painkillers, known as non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), include over-the-counter medicines such as ibuprofen and naproxen and prescription drugs such as Celebrex (celecoxib), which is used to treat conditions including arthritis. [Read more]