A retrospective review of the effect of COX-2 inhibitors on blood pressure change.

The objective of this study was to compare the difference between celecoxib and rofecoxib on blood pressure change. A retrospective review of medical records where the mean blood pressure in a 90-day period before and after start of the cyclooxygenase (COX)-2 inhibitors, celecoxib, and rofecoxib was compared. Data were abstracted from 249 patient records, of which 109 were included. The mean systolic blood pressures at baseline were comparable at 134.14 mm Hg and 134.05 mm Hg for the celecoxib (n = 52) and rofecoxib groups (n = 57), respectively (P = NS). A nonsignificant decrease in systolic blood pressure was observed for the celecoxib group (-1.15 mm Hg), while a statistically significant increase in systolic blood pressure was seen in the rofecoxib group (4.76 mm Hg, P = 0.044). The mean diastolic blood pressures at baseline were not significantly different between the two groups, and changes in the postperiod were also not statistically different compared with baseline values. The average total daily dose of COX-2 inhibitor was 219.2 mg for celecoxib and 25.23 mg for rofecoxib. A post hoc analysis of patients aged 65 years and older showed that the mean systolic blood pressure in the rofecoxib group increased by 7.37 mm Hg (P = 0.016), while there was an insignificant decrease for the celecoxib group (-1.94 mm Hg). This study showed that there were no significant changes in blood pressure after celecoxib initiation. While in the rofecoxib group, there was a significant increase in systolic blood pressure with an even greater increase for patients aged 65 years and older.