My Warning on Naproxen

From the warning the pharmacy gave me when I filled the prescription two weeks ago -

This quote is from a warning issued by the Happy Harry's pharmacy which is a drug store chain in Delaware (and elsewhere??). Happy Harry's issues these type of warnings and information pages to anyone getting a prescription.

NAPROXEN (na-PROX-en)

Common uses: This medicine is a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) used to relieve pain and swelling (inflammation). It is also used to treat headaches,muscleaches, backaches, tendonitis, bursitis, dental pain, menstrual cramps, arthritis, or gout. Naproxen may be used to reduce fever, or relieve minor aches and pain due to the common cold or flue. It may be used to treat other conditions as determined by your doctor. This medicine works by blocking the Enzyme in your body that makes prostagladins. Decreasing prostaglandins helps to reduce pain, swelling, and fever.

BEFORE USING THIS MEDICINE; WARNING: THE RISK OF SERIOUS AND SOMETIMES FATAL HEART PROBLEMS, HEART ATTACK, AND STROKE my be increased with the use of this medicine. This risk may be increased thelonger you use thismedicine. Risk may also be higher inpatients who have heart problems or who are at risk for heart problems. THIS MEDICINE SHOULD NOT BE USED to treat pain before or after coronary artery "heart bypass" (CABG) surgery. THE RISK OF SERIOUS AN SOMETIMES FATAL STOMACH AND BOWEL PROBLEMS, including bleeding, ulcers, and holes in the stomach and bowel, is increased while using this medicine. These problems may occur at any time during therapy, with or without symptoms. The warning goes on to list a bunch of drugs that ineract and the serious and deadly problems that could occur. Then .... USE OF THIS MEDICINE IS NOT RECOMMENDED if you have history of severe kidney disease or if you are going to have or have recently had coronary artery "heart bypass" (CABG) surgery. Use of this medicine in children under age 2 is not recommended. Discuss with your doctor the risks and benefits of giving this medicine to your child. Contact your doctor or pharmacist if you have any questions or concerns about taking this medicine.

I was given this prescription two weeks ago for chronic neck/throat pain. I was given 1000 mg a day for one week. When i saw the warning that the pharmacy gave me I didn't take the meds right away. I went back to the doctor to check with her. She said 'I give this all the time, that warning is just for old people. You will be fine. Take it.' So, unfortunately, I did. Oh ... the neck pain is a bit better. But quess what??? After a week on that stuff my body system has been screwed up. It started on day 6 and I got off the meds on day 7. My blood pressure that PRIOR TO TAKING THE MEDS was always between 90/60 to perhaps 120/80; was 160/90 yesterday ... and I also had (and still have) an irregular heart beat and difficulty breathing. My resting pulse was up over 110. I spent 2 hours in the emergency room. My blood pressure came down to 140/80 and my pulse was down to 80 so they sent me home.

Well NOW I'm uspet. No one is listening. Before the drug my blood pressure was fine and I rarely had any kind of irregular beat. Now ... it's a freak'n mess. The whole time in the hospital they kept saying - It can't be that drug .. it's got to be caffine intake or you are upset or blah blah blah. I kept saying that I don't drink caffine and I wasn't upset about anything ... except the fact that the drug had screwed up my system (and there was even a warning that it could) and no one was listening!

I post this as free advice and a warning ... when the pharmacy gives out a warning on a med that is commonly used and seems harmless .. pay attention to the warning and even if the doctor poo-poos it - keep paying attention to when your guardian angel whispers in your ear to be careful. I had misgivings. I went back to the doctor. When she said 'take it' I figured I had to trust her. God help me. I sure wish I didn't.

Just because something is commonly used ... or is over the counter ... PAY ATTENTION TO THE WARNINGS; both the warning the pharmacy gives you and the warning bells that go off in your head. Geeeze .. now I have a bigger mess than before. My neck isn't cured and I have just added high blood pressure and intermittent irregular heart beat to my problems. (oh ... and the hot flashes that I had just gotten over are now back as well... crap!!)


[edit on 9/12/2006 by FlyersFan]

mod edit: Quote Reference (review link)

[edit on 13-9-2006 by UK Wizard]

I'm sorry you're not feeling well, FF

True, Naprosyn can have a series of effects worse than the problem itself. I was fortunate, the only thing 1000 mg of it did was mess up my stomach.
I hate pain because i cant take Ibuprophen (my eyes hemorrage)...Tylenol doesnt touch pain for me and the heavy duty pain meds are highly addictive.
Vicodin doesnt help me either.
I'm more concerned about the strokes than anything else. My father died from a stroke....

Anyway, FF, i hope you feel better and all symptoms go away. BTW, you're not still taking them are you?

I took it for years for menstrual problems, then regularly for joint issues and I quit when I heard the initial warnings. I was lucky that it didn't bother me.

So sorry, FF, that you had this reaction. Are you returning to normal now that you've stopped taking it?

Naproxen Warning

But, of course, the FDA has now come back and said it's unjustified. Pharmaceutical companies, no doubt, didn't like the $$ hit they took.

I avoid pharmaceuticals whenever possible. Take herbs! Homeopathics. Anything but state-sanctioned drugs!

While Naproxen is a very common and typically safe drug (Aleve is the brand name OTC version), it has been linked to increased heart risk. The reason the doctor probably told you it was only effected people who were old was because the study that showed Naproxen increased the chance of heart problems was discovered while doing a study to see its effects on Alzheimer's. No study that I know of has been done on non-senior citizens.

Like all drugs, though, this has some side effects that only work on a small percentage of people. The question is, at what point do the risks outweigh the benefits? If the quality of living is improved for 999 people having a drug on the market, but it is decreased for 1 person, should that drug be removed from the market? Honestly, I think they should have the numbers from the studies on the warnings so you know what the chances are that there could be problems.

I agree with you, FF, you really do need to be aware of the warnings for all drugs, over the counter or prescription. Be aware of them, and go to your doctor if you start to experience any of them. Your doctor will be able to find alternative drugs or treatments.

I hope you feel better, FF!

FF- I too was prescribed Naproxin by my doctor for migraine headaches associated with my menstral cycle. Considering I have been suffering from these headaches for years I was willing to trust her judgement too although I did read the warnings on the label.
I too had misgivings but thought that I was only going to take it with the onset of a migraine and it wouldn't be every day just when needed.

Well I have had to take the medicine since it was prescibed and yes while true it did get rid of my headache it also left me feeling very dizzy and my face went numb.

It rather scared me and I reread the label with the given warnings. I agree that the risk just might outweigh the benefits. Most of which are irreversable.

FF
Thanks for the heads-up on this. I am pretty sure I have seen warnings on it on TV, and there is a class-action suit going on over Naproxen. Just google "Naproxen lawsuit."

Originally posted by Benevolent Heretic
Are you returning to normal now that you've stopped taking it?

NO. That's the spooky thing. It's been almost a week since I stopped it. I only took it for one week and I've been off it a week. My blood pressure is still high and my heart beat is still irregular.

I just wonder how long it will be, if ever, that my system gets back to what it was pre-naproxen.

Originally posted by jsobecky
Just google "Naproxen lawsuit."

www.injuryboard.com...=700

Got it! If I had known about all this before I never would have taken it. I just hope I haven't been injured forever. I hope it is reversable.

Thanks.

Naproxen, as I recall, worked pretty well at helping control chronic migraine pain -- with inflamation of the trimengial nerve. Unfrortunately, the stomach distress that this anti-inflamatory caused was severe enough to be forced to stop. I had no other ill-effects other than the irritated bowel which, although troublesome, was not really worse than I had experienced with other anti-inflamatories that I had been tried on. But, then, there was the issue with the bleeding.

Regardless, I have heard that Naproxen had helped others with similar inflamtion of the trimengial nerve and associated migraine and that they had been able to tolerate the side effects better than I had. It's unfortunate that a drug that has helped some people is banned because of potential health risks. Sometimes, when deal with chronic, intractable pain, the risk is sometimes deemed "worth it".

As for my own chronic pain, I am happy to report that, after trials with a myriad of other anti-inflamatories, narcotics and the like, I have found an OTC drug, Advil 'Liqui-gel' capsules have been remarkably effective. Who knew?

OH! hope you have a speedy recovery FF and thanks for the heads up,approx once a year i usually do my back in and take what ever anti-informatory the Doc prescribes but i only take about 3 of them until i feel some improvement and then stop taking them.

But i`ll make sure to steer well clear of Naproxen.

Try not to stress FF it wont help with high blood pressure and get rested.

Keep us posted on your condition.

Thoughts and prays your way.

Okay ... three weeks off the drug. My blood pressure is almost back to where it is supposed to be. HOWEVER, I am still very short of breath and my irregular heart beat is still kicking in.

The EKG came back okay ... but I do have chest pressure.

MAN ... I hope my body can repair the damage done by that drug.

Sorry FF, hope you recover fast!

They prescribed you a dosage of 1000mg? Usually the normal dose is around 200-400mg. Above that and you’re at a high risk of cardiovascular problems. Was the pain really bad?

adam.about.com..." target="_blank" class="postlink" rel="nofollow">Source
Among the NSAIDs that may increase blood pressure are ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin, Rufen) and naproxen (Anaprox, Naprosyn, Aleve). In one important study, women who used an NSAID for five or more days a month had a significantly higher risk for hypertension.

The doctor who prescribed the drug (not just the pharmacy where you picked it up) is supposed to tell you all of that before giving you such a high dosage.

Interesting story: Just a few months ago my dad found out that his cholesterol levels were too high. He’s pretty fit and has no other problems. The doctor gives him a statin ( lipitor) and tells him nothing about side effects. So about 4 months down the road, my dad starts to experience joint pains, fuzziness, memory issues etc..( he would forget things that he normally wouldn’t have) I told him to go see his (I did not know he was on a statin drug to reduce his cholesterol) Dad comes back with two more prescriptions, one NSAID and Plavix(which is really a more expensive anticoagulant…aspirin would’ve sufficed). When I found out what was wrong he had already been on these three drugs for months. It took him a while to recuperate but he was able to do it. My dad’s doctor hates my guts even now…

Most people don’t read the little booklet that comes with their prescriptions and chuck it the moment they get home. One should always be aware of these just in a case a new symptom appears and can be found on the list of side effects. 9 out of 10 times the doctor will just prescribe a new pill for the new symptom without mentioning the original pill!

Flyers, keep pushing the fault at naproxen for your problems now.

I am one of those people that can not take naproxen because of very severe allergy reaction.

But then again instead of naproxen I was given vioxx so that tells you that when it comes to medicines we are the mercy of whatever is prescribed to us.

Vioxx didn't gave me any side effects.

Now if you stop taking the naproxen your hart should go back to normal unless the medication has damage somewhat your valves.

So get more test done to see if you hart is fine and not scaring or other problems directly affecting your hart.

If is just the blood pressure and hart palpitations then it should go away eventually.

I hope that everything is just momentarily and no long term.

Take care and get back and fight against what has done damage to your body.

Don't let doctors tell you that is all in your mind!!!!!!!!! because it is not!!!!!!!!

I know is frustrating but you can stand your ground.

Originally posted by marg6043


Now if you stop taking the naproxen your hart should go back to normal unless the medication has damage somewhat your valves.

Hey Marg

Where do you read about the valve damage? It wasn't something I was aware of.

naproxen

Interesting about the doseages you got given, Flyers fan. I suppose if you started to get really unusual levels of sodium or potassium it could cause arrythmias, but that's just guessing, really. I think that if you were urinating less, because your kidneys weren't working as well as they normally did, that could explain the increased blood pressure. But again, it's all just guesswork.


quick wiki

You're the resident ATS guinea pig! Hopefully no-one is doing an LD50 test on you

Hope you feel better soon - and stick to ibuprofen in future!

TD

[edit on 3-10-2006 by TaupeDragon]

Originally posted by TaupeDragon

Hey Marg

Where do you read about the valve damage? It wasn't something I was aware of.

Is just a precaution, the valve damage is something that can happen when the hart pumps to fast.

I'm sorry your heart is still fluttering, FF...you sure it isnt nerves?

I would ask your doctor to give you a mild sedative to see if that helps. Not for long term, just to see if its anxiety. Hope you feel better.

Thanks for posting this. I take it for about 3-4 days a month (cut down blood flow)

But I didn't know about these warnings. I already had a heart problem thanks to meds in the past - and with my chest pain happening off and on again - maybe it's time to stop.

Crap. I HAVE to take them tommorrow. If I have to be away from home (for 3 days a month) I have to take one every 8 hours... I have no choice.

I'll talk to the O.B. about that.

Sorry to hear your problem FF.
I took it years ago for an injury. Was on and off it. Went through about 100 of them.
If I remember (sort of) I threw the the rest out. I was having some side effect but for the life of me can't remember what it did. I just remember something happened last time I took it and I decided it wasn't for me anymore.
I do Advil now for muscle/joint pain.

I must be the luckiest person on Earth. My MD. is also an Herbalist and a Homeopath. We treat every thing naturally. Off and on I "sin" and take an Aspirin or an Ibuprofen.
She has a private practice and is not in the pocket of a big cooperation.
I think we have been manipulated to support and rely on"modern" medicine.
WIS

Originally posted by WalkInSilence
I must be the luckiest person on Earth. My MD. is also an Herbalist and a Homeopath. We treat every thing naturally. Off and on I "sin" and take an Aspirin or an Ibuprofen.

WIS

Could you not just try and convince yourself that aspirin is just boiled willow tree bark?

TD

hug that tree