Opioids and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs ( NSAIDs ) are commonly used to alleviate pain in rheumatoid arthritis patients. However, many doctors prefer opioids over NSAIDs due to the increased risk of cardiovascular events associated with NSAIDs. However, a recent study presented at the Americal College of Rheumatology‘s ACR Convergence 2022 has reported the cardiovascular adverse effects of opioids versus NSAIDs in RA patients. The study was conducted on 4,778 opioid initiators and 11,218 NSAID initiators.
Major cardiovascular incidents and all-cause mortality rates were lower among NSAID initiators than opioid initiators (392 and 228 vs. 133 and 95, respectively); however, the risk was similar in propensity score-weighted models. A two-fold increase in the risk of venous thromboembolism (VTE) was found in the opioid group. Thus, the findings of this study suggest that opioids…
