Additional warning labels may be coming for many common pain relievers used by psoriatic arthritis patients.
The over-the-counter drugs remain safe and effective when used as directed, the Food and Drug Administration said. However, overdoses of acetaminophen can cause serious liver damage, even death, the FDA said.Aspirin, ibuprofen and other nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs carry a risk of gastrointestinal bleeding and kidney injury even at the correct dose. The drugs are linked to thousands of deaths a year, but the FDA said the risk is rare when compared with the number of patients who take the drugs.
The drugs are found in hundreds of products to treat pain, headache and fever. Health officials worry that the wide availability of those combination products allows patients to overdose unwittingly.
… For acetaminophen, the labels also would warn of the risk of severe liver damage if patients take more than the recommended dose or consume three or more alcoholic drinks a day while on the drugs. The labels also would warn patients not to take multiple medications that contain acetaminophen. In any given week, an estimated 48 million Americans take an acetaminophen product.
For aspirin, ibuprofen, naproxen and other nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, or NSAIDs, the labels would have to contain additional warnings of the risk of stomach bleeding. The labels would note that the risk is higher in patients older than 59, or in those who have stomach ulcers, take blood-thinning drugs or steroids, use other drugs that contain an NSAID or remain on the medications for an extended period. An estimated 17 million Americans take an NSAID daily.
Question: if someone with psoriatic arthritis dies from complications related to extensive use of these pain relievers (“The drugs are linked to thousands of deaths a year…”), do you think the medical system records that as a psoriasis-related fatality? The answer is apparently not–a cost of these diseases that is not captured by those who make research funding or insurance coverage decisions but is nonetheless very real.
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