Did you know that a common headache medicine might lower blood pressure?
A recent study has found this interesting fact. It’s about a medicine we often use: acetaminophen.
What is Acetaminophen?
Acetaminophen is a painkiller. Many of us use it for headaches. Usually, we take it by mouth. But in hospitals, it’s often given in a different way. There, doctors and nurses give it through a vein. This is called “intravenous” delivery.
Why Give Acetaminophen Intravenously?
Why do hospitals do this? There are several reasons. This way, the medicine works faster.
Doctors and nurses can control how much and when the medicine affects the patient. And it’s also helpful for very sick patients who can’t swallow pills.
The Study: Acetaminophen and Blood Pressure
But this intravenous use of acetaminophen has a serious side effect. It can cause a big, temporary drop in blood pressure.
This happens in many patients, both common and very sick ones. In very sick patients, about six out of ten have had this side effect. One-third of these needed medical help because of it.
Even with this side effect, doctors and nurses still use intravenous acetaminophen. It’s seen as a stable drug. And it’s becoming more common in hospitals. Many healthcare professionals know about this side effect.
The Research Team’s Findings
In this study, researchers wanted to know why acetaminophen causes this blood pressure drop. The research team was led by Thomas Qvistgaard Jepps, from the University of Copenhagen.
The team found out something interesting. When given intravenously, acetaminophen bypasses the liver. This means the body processes it differently than when it’s taken orally.
The chemicals that result from this processing cause an effect. This effect wouldn’t happen if the drug was taken by mouth.
Specifically, these chemicals affect some potassium channels. These channels help control how blood vessels tighten and relax. And that controls blood pressure.
The research team did more testing. They used drugs to block these potassium channels. And it worked! In test rats, this reduced the side effect of the big blood pressure drop.
What Does This Mean for Us?
The researchers say most people don’t need to worry about taking painkillers. As long as they don’t take more than the recommended dose, they should be okay.
This study is important, especially now. During the COVID-19 crisis, more very sick patients may be getting intravenous acetaminophen. This helps manage pain and fever in hospitals.
If you care about high blood pressure, please read studies about the best time to take high blood pressure drugs, and scientists find new way to treat high blood pressure.
For more information about health, please see recent studies that Beetroot juice could help lower high blood pressure, and results showing this common plant nutrient could help reduce high blood pressure.
The research was published in the journal Atherosclerosis, Thrombosis, and Vascular Biology.
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