Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), a type of antidepressant, were a frequent therapy for melancholy, but just recent research cautions that using conventional analgesics with SSRIs could increase the risk of gastrointestinal hemorrhage.
Internal and external bleeding can be a significant cause in most cases. Excess bleeding may lead to a lack of required blood to organs. This may also lead to multi-organ failure if one does not get the right treatment timely.
Antidepressants & Popular Pain Relievers May Increase Risk Of Bleeding
Those who go for different types of painkillers frequently may have to face such risk over a period as such medicines trigger the risk of bleeding to a huge extent, said an expert from the research team.
Scientists discovered that individuals on SSRIs plus nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory medications (NSAIDs), including Advil with Aleve, have an elevated incidence of intestinal bleeding during an analysis of ten published trials, including 6,000 individuals.
“When adding SSRIs to patients already on NSAIDs, the odds of developing an upper gastrointestinal bleed increased by 75%,” stated lead researcher Dr. Syed Alam, chief resident in internal medicine at Creighton University School of Medicine in Omaha, Nebraska.
He believes the combination of the two kinds of medicines is to blame for the higher chance of higher gastrointestinal hemorrhage. NSAIDs block the formation of prostaglandin, which defends the gastrointestinal system, while SSRIs block platelets synthesis, which is necessary for clotting. As a result, Alam said, this mixture raises the danger of hemorrhage.
“The risk of upper gastrointestinal bleed by adding an SSRI to an NSAID needs to be discussed between the patient and physician,” he said. “When possible, it is best to reduce or discontinue NSAIDs before starting an SSRI to minimize upper gastrointestinal bleed risk.”
SSRIs raise gut acid, which can lead to stomach ulcers, as well as increase the danger of gastrointestinal bleeding, according to Dr. Elena Ivanina.
“Doctors and patients should both be aware of the medications that increase the risk of gastrointestinal bleeding,” she said. “Patients should always discuss their medications with their doctor. For example, because the risk of gastrointestinal bleeding is significantly elevated when SSRIs are used together with NSAIDs like Motrin, doctors should exercise caution and consider alternative treatments to this combination.”
The indications of intestinal bleeding, according to Ivanina, can be visible or concealed.
She explained that disease might result in bloody vomit, blood in the stool, or black feces. “Some bleeding, however, may be microscopic and not seen; therefore, symptoms of anemia such as fatigue, shortness of breath on exertion, or lightheadedness may signal blood loss as well,” Ivanina explained.
Other specialist thinks that the danger of internal injuries linked to such medicines should be investigated since people were progressively taking another antidepressant that helps ease discomfort.
SSRIs are well-known to enhance bleeding risks, according to Dr. Jeffrey Fudin, CEO of Pharmacist Advisory Services.
“Patients should also be aware that aspirin and anticoagulants elevate the risk of gastrointestinal bleed with or without NSAIDs,” he said. This is why SSRIs block the dopamine contained in platelet, which is crucial for bleeding, impairing platelet functioning.
Since most physicians were reluctant to prescribe opioids, more individuals were increasingly being prescribed serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (SNRIs), like duloxetine (Cymbalta) or milnacipran (Savella), that were both FDA-approved antidepressants & discomfort relievers, he added.
“Although fewer studies have examined the bleeding risks of SNRIs, it is logical to expect SNRIs will affect bleeding risk, albeit to a lesser extent than SSRIs,” Fudin said.
The results are reported on Weekend at the American College of Gastroenterology, which is taking place in Las Vegas and online. Scientific conference results were deemed tentative unless they were reported in a peer-reviewed publication.
