Early in the pandemic, some health agencies suggested that anti-inflammatory drugs, such as the popular ibuprofen, might be associated with a more severe picture of COVID-19.
A recent study sheds more light on this link.
A team of British researchers has analyzed data from 72,000 patients with COVID-19 hospitalized between January and August 2020, some of whom took nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, and concluded that the mortality rate was similar for both patient groups (31.3% and 30.4%, respectively).
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The use of anti-inflammatory drugs was also not associated with the severity of the disease.
We now have clear evidence that nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs are safe to use in patients with COVID-19
says study lead author Ewen Harrison of the University of Edinburgh.
The author stresses that this finding “should reassure both physicians and patients.”
However, more studies are still needed, as the researchers did not take into account the duration of treatment.
It is also not known if the results can be applied to anti-inflammatory drugs used outside the UK.
The results of the study have been published in the scientific journal The Lancet Rheumatology.
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