Do NSAIDs and paracetamol suppress ESR?

770 Views 2 Replies 3 Participants Last post by Lily, Oct 1, 2008

cemc

Discussion Starter · Sep 30, 2008

I've not had particularly high ESR levels even during what I think might be flares (I'm undiagnosed at the moment), but it just occurred to me that perhaps I might have been keeping the ESR down by often getting straight into the NSAIDS and paracetamol (tylenol in the US?) when I start flaring. Would this happen?

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Maia

· #2 · Oct 1, 2008

NSAID's generally speaking have no effect on ESR, same with Tylenol. I went to emedicine to verify my memory on this one! The article is for a different disorder, but answers your question at least specifically about NSAIDs. Tylenol acts via a very different pathway, and would be even less likely to lower ESR due to this different pathway.

(article with statement about NSAID lack of effect on ESR)
http://www.emedicine.com/med/topic1871.htm

My ESR has never been elevated either, and I have a definite lupus diagnosis. It does not have to be elevated to have lupus, although some doctors seem to think it does still!

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Lily

· #3 · Oct 1, 2008

Hi there,

It's difficult to find information concerning ESR response to NSAIDS in Lupus, apart from the medical journals that have to be subscribed to. There's some information out there that says NSAIDS can lower ESR in RA & AS though.

http://www.uptodate.com/online/content/abstract.do?topicKey=~ysCjpDFe1FieUx&refNum=1-4

http://rheumatology.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/full/kel430v1

Personally like Maia I never have a raised ESR, even when I was unmedicated and there are plenty of others out there for whom that is true. My disease activity seemed to correlate well with sub normal figures of C3 & C4 but as that is a more expensive test they just go on symptoms for me now. However certainly during diagnosis it was helpful in proving a point.

love
Lily

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