Is taking too much pain reliever harmful?

1. Some side effects of pain relievers Pain relievers are effective in treating pain caused by pathology, trauma, during and after surgery. However, taking a lot of pain relievers also encounters the opposite effect, affecting health or causing dangerous complications as follows:
1.1. Affects the gastrointestinal tract causing ulcers, bleeding Paracetamol rarely causes side effects on the digestive system. However, high doses of paracetamol or long-term use can affect the stomach causing symptoms such as abdominal pain, heartburn, nausea or vomiting.
When using high doses of aspirin and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs can damage the gastric mucosa, epigastric discomfort and cause bleeding in the upper gastrointestinal tract. Some of the symptoms that the patient may experience include: vomiting, weight loss. Using high doses of ibuprofen continuously for three days also causes stomach bleeding ulcers.
Patients who are elderly, have weak health or drink a lot of alcohol and tobacco, the side effects on the gastrointestinal tract when using these pain relievers turn faster and more severe, which can lead to hospitalization.
1.2. Abuse of painkillers leads to addiction Many doctors prescribe opioid pain relievers such as codeine, morphine, tramadol in cases of chronic or persistent pain. This group of drugs are narcotic pain relievers, especially in the case of long-term use and use, it will be difficult to stop the drug.
1.3. Cardiovascular effects cause high blood pressure, heart attack and stroke Some studies show that if women take non-aspirin pain relievers, they are twice as likely to develop high blood pressure. Aspirin alone has not been shown to cause high blood pressure in women.
Another study also found that taking higher doses of paracetamol was associated with heart attacks, strokes or high blood pressure. However, paracetamol is still safer than non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and may be prescribed for people with cardiovascular disease instead.

1.4. Increased fracture in the elderly Opioid analgesics may increase the frequency of fractures in the elderly over 60 years of age. If you use the above drug in a dose greater than 50mg, the side effects of fracture are more increased and more pronounced in this subject.
1.5. Increased liver enzymes cause liver damage Taking drugs in high doses or for a long time can affect the liver because the liver's main function is to break down substances taken by mouth including drugs, herbs, and foods. function.
If the pain reliever is used correctly, paracetamol is relatively safe even for people with liver disease, but if paracetamol is overdosed or used in high doses continuously for several days, it will cause liver damage and acute liver failure leading to death. death.
1.6. Decreased kidney function causing kidney failure Paracetamol and ibuprofen can cause kidney damage if used for a long time or used on people who already have reduced kidney function. Therefore, you must strictly follow the instructions for using pain relievers prescribed by your doctor.

2. Is taking a lot of pain relievers harmful? In addition to harming the digestive system, cardiovascular system, liver and kidneys, you may also experience some other side effects when using pain relievers of the non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug group and paracetamol such as fatigue, dizziness. face, allergies, skin rash, itching, drowsiness.
Paracetamol is still considered a safe pain reliever and has fewer side effects than non-steroidal anti-inflammatory pain relievers. However, paracetamol does not have anti-inflammatory properties, so NSAIDs are still the optimal choice for pain relief in pain associated with inflammation.

3. Can short-term pain relievers avoid side effects? Taking short-term anti-inflammatory pain relievers still cannot avoid its side effects. Even in the first days of use, most non-steroidal anti-inflammatory analgesics and antipyretics have the potential to increase the risk of gastrointestinal bleeding, especially non-selective non-steroidal anti-inflammatory analgesics and anti-inflammatory drugs. This risk may persist throughout treatment. Therefore, it is necessary to use the drug at a low dose and for the shortest time but still bring about effective treatment. In some cases, the doctor may prescribe drugs such as misoprostol or PPIs to help protect the digestive tract or choose the COX-2 selective non-steroidal anti-inflammatory pain reliever and anti-inflammatory drug of the coxib group. side effects on the gastrointestinal tract in treatment.
According to experts, patients are at risk of cardiovascular events from the first week of taking antipyretic analgesics, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs. Patients will appear typical symptoms such as: chest pain, shortness of breath, shortness of breath, weakness in one part or one side of the body. This could be a sign of a heart attack or stroke, you need to stop taking the medicine immediately and see your doctor again.
For high-risk groups such as elderly patients over 65 years old, with underlying medical conditions (diabetes, hypertension, cardiovascular disease, liver failure, kidney failure), patients with a history of ulcers , stomach bleeding and patients who have used long-term or high-dose non-steroidal anti-inflammatory pain relievers and anti-inflammatory drugs, please discuss with your doctor immediately for advice on how to prescribe appropriate medication instructions.

4. What are the precautions when taking pain relievers? Painkillers are used a lot in life. Taking too much pain medicine without reasonable will also cause some dangers. A few notes when using pain relievers below will help you reduce the risk of side effects:
For children under 16 years of age, do not use aspirin because it can affect the brain and liver Because the body and development of children are much different from that of adults. For pregnant and lactating women, they should not use drugs that can affect the fetus or the quality of breast milk, including drugs related to pain relief, antipyretic, anti-inflammatory. For the elderly, it is necessary to be very careful about side effects with the components of the drug because it is possible that at this stage, the liver, kidney and digestive tract functions are no longer as healthy as in adolescence. Therefore, it is necessary to choose the correct pain reliever and the correct dosage to avoid unwanted complications. In short, pain relievers need to be taken according to the doctor's prescription to avoid unwanted health risks.