The popular pain relief drug Vioxx (rofecoxib) seems to increase the risk of high blood pressure in older adults, whereas its main competitor Celebrex (celecoxib) does not, new research suggests. “Several studies, including this one, suggest that Vioxx but not Celebrex is associated with an increased risk of high blood pressure,” lead researcher Dr. Daniel H. Solomon of Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Boston, told Reuters Health. “This is important for doctors and patients to consider when starting one of these medicines.” As reported in the medical journal Hypertension, Solomon and colleagues studied 17,844 subjects 65 years of age or older. During the 1999 to 2000 study period, 3915 patients were diagnosed with and began treatment for high blood pressure.
