Taking a combination of two common arthritis drugs could dramatically increase your risk of developing a stomach ulcer, according to the results of a new study.
The two drugs are alendronate and the non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug naproxen. Both are commonly used in patients with evidence and symptoms of osteoporosis. Although both drugs cause gastric ulcers when used individually, the authors found that when they are taken together the rate of stomach ulcers is far greater than would be expected from adding the effects of the two drugs separately (Archives of Internal Medicine 2001;161:107-10).
In a crossover study of the two drugs, Drs David Graham and Hoda Malaty from the Veterans Affairs Medical Center and Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas, randomly assigned 26 healthy volunteers to 10 mg a day of alendronate sodium, 500 mg of naproxen sodium twice daily, or a combination of both drugs—all taken orally for 14 days.
Endoscopic examinations were used to evaluate the presence and degree of mucosal damage to the oesophagus, stomach, or duodenal bulb.
Stomach ulcers developed in 8% of the study participants receiving alendronate alone, in 12% of those receiving naproxen alone, and in 38% of the participants taking both alendronate and naproxen. Even in volunteers who did not develop ulcers, the damage to the lining of the stomach was significantly worse in those who received the combination of drugs than in those who took either drug alone.