In the hopes that her condition will get better, a mom from the UK took a popular pain reliever to treat her common cold. This decision landed her in a hospital due to internal bleeding.
Her Cold Got Worse And Her Stool Blackened
Christine Smith told The Mirror that she always has a supply of ibuprofen, just like everyone else, that she uses for cold or hangover. So when she began feeling a ill last month due to cold, she decided to pop 200mg of ibuprofen, which is the recommended dose. She took the drug every four hours, but her symptoms got worse.
She also noticed something different in her stools. "I noticed my stools were black, smelly and they looked like sticky tar. I put it down to the fact that I wasn't feeling great. By Sunday, however, the stools were getting more frequent and smellier. They were also still black," Smith said.
That's when she decided to check online as to what could have caused this. She was horrified when she read from NHS Direct website that she could be bleeding internally.
Common side effects of ibuprofen, according to The Sun, include dizziness, inflammation of the stomach (gastritis), kidney failure and black stools and blood in your vomit - which can indicate bleeding in your stomach - and which is what Christine experienced.
Doctor Said The Ibuprofen Caused Infection And Inflammation
She called her doctor immediately who told her that she needs to go to the hospital. Medics ordered an endoscopy, and they found out that the ibuprofen caused inflammation and infection. She was then told to not take ibuprofen again.
A previous study already warned patients about taking ibuprofen for long periods of time, since it increases the risk of heart attack and stroke. Experts say that when you really need to take an anti inflammatory medicine, you may opt to take celecoxib instead since it does not increase the risk of heart problems.
