Non-steroidal anti-inflammatories and the development of analgesic nephropathy: a systematic review

BACKGROUND

Analgesic nephropathy (AN) is chronic renal impairment as a direct consequence of chronic heavy analgesia ingestion. An association between non-steroidal anti-inflammatory agents and chronic kidney disease (CKD) has long been suspected. Despite ample observational data obtained in recent decades the relationship remains uncertain. This systematic review intends to summarize the available literature and to define the role of non-steroidal anti-inflammatories in the natural history of AN.

METHODS

We conducted a systematic literature search for articles describing the association between non-steroidal anti-inflammatory abuse and renal insufficiency. No restriction was placed on publication date, but papers were limited to English language, observational design, and human studies.

RESULTS

Nine articles met our inclusion criteria and were discussed in this review. This includes 5 cohort studies and 4 case-control trials, with a combined population of 12,418 study subjects and 23,877 controls. Eight of the nine reports failed to identify any increased risk of chronic renal impairment with heavy non-steroidal anti-inflammatory consumption. Study methods were heterogeneous and the overall quality of data was relatively poor.

CONCLUSION

A relationship between non-steroidal anti-inflammatory medicines and the development of CKD has never been proven. Based on the available scientific evidence non-steroidal anti-inflammatory agents do not appear to be implicated in the pathogenesis of AN.