Acetaminophen Increases BP

A double-blind, placebo-controlled, crossover trial concluded that regular daily intake of 4 g acetaminophen increases systolic blood pressure (BP) in individuals with hypertension by ≈5 mm Hg when compared with placebo. The trial randomized 110 patients of high BP to receive 1 g acetaminophen 4× daily or matched placebo for 2 weeks, followed by a 2-week washout period before crossing over to the alternate treatment. One-hundred three patients completed both arms of the study. Regular acetaminophen, compared with placebo, resulted in a significant increase in mean daytime systolic BP (132.8±10.5 to 136.5±10.1 mm Hg [acetaminophen] vs 133.9±10.3 to 132.5±9.9 mm Hg [placebo]) with a placebo-corrected increase of 4.7 mm Hg and mean daytime diastolic BP (81.2±8.0 to 82.1±7.8 mm Hg [acetaminophen] vs 81.7±7.9 to 80.9±7.8 mm Hg [placebo]) with a placebo-corrected increase of 1.6 mm Hg. Similar findings were seen for 24-hour ambulatory and clinic BPs. The findings are in line with observational studies and support that regular use of acetaminophen, like nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, increases BP and cardiovascular risk. Source: https://www.ahajournals.org/