If you're having surgery, steer clear of this risky drug given for pain

[Urgent] Beware of this new, risky pain med even the FDA said ‘no’ to

If you’re going to be having any kind of surgery, even something minor, there’s a question you must ask your doctor or nurse.

They’ll probably want to give you something for pain.

And you need to ask if it’s called Dyloject. If it is, insist on something else.

Dyloject isn’t a pill or a drip like most pain meds. No, it’s a new shot the FDA finally approved at the end of last year. Twice, the agency had turned down the drug’s maker, Hospira.

But the company finally grabbed the brass ring last December when the FDA OK’d this med.

Warning: Experts say it is unsafe at ANY dose.

The generic name of this drug is diclofenac.

And it’s been around for a long time. It’s one of the oldest NSAIDs out there, but mostly used in Third-World countries.

Now, it’s made its way to the U.S. as an injection to treat pain after surgery.

But don’t think because it’s been prescribed for so long that means it’s safe.

Dr. David Henry, who recently published a study about NSAIDs said that thousands of people have died because of diclofenac. Dr. Henry is going as far as petitioning the World Health Organization to take the med off its list of essential medicines.

It’s in the same class as Vioxx, the painkiller that was finally taken off the shelf — but not until over 60,000 people died from strokes or suffered heart attacks while taking it.

And Dr. Henry found out that diclofenac is at least as dangerous as Vioxx. It can increase your risk of a heart attack by a whopping 40 percent.

The drug’s label will give you all the terrible details. But that label is something you won’t see when you get a shot of it in your doctor’s office.

It hits the market already with a black box warning for heart attacks, “which can be fatal.”

But that’s not the only danger.

Dyloject can also cause GI “bleeding, ulceration and perforation of the stomach or intestines.” That’s something that can happen at any time…without warning.

And the danger increases if you’re older, have heart problems, or even any “risk factors” for heart disease.

As I said, Dyloject had been turned down twice by the FDA.

Hospira first had a “date” with the agency way back in 2010. And then again in 2013. But in 2014 the FDA apparently couldn’t bring itself to say “no” a third time.

So now we have to. Make sure you tell your doctor you don’t want Dyloject for post-surgery pain.

In fact, it’s probably good to avoid any drug that has “die” in the name.

Sources:
“FDA okays diclofenac injection (Dyloject) for pain” Susan Jeffrey, December 30, 2014, Medscape Medical News, medscape.com