Increased heart attack risk between 24 and 58 per cent overall compared to not using painkillers.
Taking ibuprofen could quickly increase the risk of heart attack – a “worrying” potential side-effect that appears to occur from the first week of regular use, according to a new study.
While the overall risk of heart attack remains low, they are most likely to occur within the first month of taking a high dose of ibuprofen or other common painkillers, an international team of researchers has claimed.
Ibuprofen, available in supermarkets and corner shops, is a type of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID).
“Taking any dose of NSAIDs for one week, one month, or more than a month was associated with an increased risk of myocardial infarction [heart attack],” wrote the researchers, led by Michèle Bally of the University of Montreal Hospital Research Centre in Canada.