Gypsie asked
Just recently started taking 25 mg of Atenlol 1x a day, at bedtime. What are the risk of taking this with 1060 mg 1x a day (recommended dosage) of Magnesium Salicylate Tetrahydrate >otc Doan's backache pills? The Doan's seems to help so much more that Tylenol or Motrin. So is it safe? What should I be wary of?
Answer
There is no drug interaction between atenolol and Doan's Backache Relief pills (magnesium salicylate). There does need to be however, a slight consideration on how Doan's (magnesium salicylate) may affectt blood pressure in general.
Doan's is a popular over the counter medication that contains magnesium salicylate, a derivative of aspirin (salicylic acid). It is commonly used for the control of pain and as an anti-inflammatory agent. Unlike aspirin, magnesium salicylate has a low incidence of gastrointestinal side effects (e.g. stomach pain, cramping) and does not have a significant effect on platelet function and therefore does not thin the blood. Due to these attributes, it is often considered a safer medication to take for pain than plain aspirin. It should however be used with care in people with renal disease due to high magnesium content.
Magnesium salicylate, like aspirin, inhibits prostaglandin synthesis. Inhibition of prostaglandin synthesis is what makes magnesium salicylate an effective pain reliever and anti-inflammatory agent. One possible negative of this is that the inhibition of prostaglandins can lead to sodium and water retention in the body, all of which can contribute to hypertension and an increased of cardiac related issues.
So while magnesium salicylate doesn't interact with atenolol directly, it is theorized that magnesium salicylate may potentially negate the anti-hypertensive effect of blood pressure medications. This drug-disease interaction isn't considered to be major or serious, but it is something to consider if using magnesium salicylate for longer term periods of time.
