PREVALENCE AND THE PATTERNS OF USE OF NON-STEROIDAL
ANTI-INFLAMMATORY DRUGS (NSAIDS) AND PARACETAMOL
AMONG THE GENERAL POPULATION
MARIA SUCIU 1#, LIANA SUCIU 1#, LAVINIA VLAIA 1*, MIRELA VOICU 1, VALENTINA BUDA 1, LIANA DRĂGAN 1, MINODORA ANDOR 2, VICENŢIU VLAIA 1, CARMEN CRISTESCU 1
1”Victor Babeş” University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Faculty of Pharmacy, Eftimie Murgu Square no. 2, 300041,
Timişoara, Romania
2” Victor Babeş” University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Faculty of Medicine, Eftimie Murgu Square no. 2, 300041,
Timişoara, Romania
*corresponding author: vlaia.lavinia@umft.ro
#Authors with equal contribution
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Abstract:
Different studies published in the last 15 years reported an increased incidence of adverse drug events, particularly on
cardiovascular (CV) and cerebrovascular systems, during the consumption of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory (NSAIDs)
drugs. The purposes of this study were: to identify the prevalence of the NSAIDs and paracetamol use, to analyse the use
patterns of these drugs and to assess the risk to develop adverse CV effects in relation to different factors in order to improve
the patients’ safety. The data contained by the self-administered questionnaires, fully completed by 735 patients, were
analysed. The relationships between the use of NSAIDs and paracetamol by the CV/non-CV patients and different variables
were comparatively analysed using the Windows 17.0 version of Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS). The
main medical reasons motivating the NSAIDs use were: joint pain (41.22%), low back pain (35.10%) and headache (8.98%).
Compared to non-CV patients, those with a CV disease (60.41% of the respondents using NSAIDs) have used more
frequently: diclofenac (OR: 2.674; 95% CI: 1.822 - 3.924), ketoprofen (OR: 1.711; 95% CI: 0.970 - 3.018) and indomethacin
(OR: 3.814; 95% CI: 1.577 - 9.222). 64.86% of the CV patients acquired NSAIDS by self-medication. High prevalence of
NSAIDs current use was observed in the case of the CV patients, presenting an increased risk to develop significant sideevents
in a chronic, irrational or abusive, consumption of these molecules.






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