If you have an infection, think twice before taking ibuprofen

The French national agency for the safety of medicines and health products (ANSM) has issued a warning about complications related to taking ibuprofen and ketoprofen together in cases of infection.

The data was collected over a period of 18 years and revealed complications caused by simultaneous ketaprofen and ibuprofen use. In total, 337 infection complications were reported, including 32 fatalities relating to ibuprofen.

Moreover, these complications were observed just 2-3 days after treatment. These two non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), often taken at home for self-medication, should therefore be used with extreme caution.

The ANSM advises sticking to paracetamol for relieving pain or fever, “especially in cases of common infections such as angina, rhinopharyngitis, ear infections, cough, lung infections, infected cuts or chicken pox, and particularly when self-medicating"