Now It's Naproxen Showing Stroke or Heart Attack Risk

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) announced that research investigators suspended the use of two drugs, naproxen (220 mg twice a day) and celecoxib (200 mg twice a day), in a large, three-arm, national Alzheimer’s disease prevention trial sponsored by the National Institute on Aging, a part of the NIH. Approximately 2400 volunteer participants were randomly assigned to receive naproxen, celecoxib, or placebo for periods of time up to three years. Although no significant increase in risk for celecoxib was found in this trial, the use of these drugs in the study was suspended in part because of findings reported last week from a National Cancer Institute trial to test the effectiveness of celecoxib in preventing colon cancer. In addition, data from the Alzheimer's trial indicated an apparent increase in cardiovascular and cerebrovascular events among the participants taking naproxen when compared with those on placebo. Read more from NIH. Also, Teri Robert, About Guide to Headaches has covered the story.