The world’s most commonly prescribed opioid has been shown to offer limited pain relief benefits while elevating the risk of deadly cardiovascular events. Of the 19 pain studies analyzed, five examined nerve pain, nine focused on osteoarthritis, four looked at chronic low back pain and one studied fibromyalgia. The ‘cardiac events’ category was created from individual reports like ‘myocardial infarction,’ (heart attack), ‘chest pain’ and ‘congestive heart failure’ that were documented. CAD is a leading cause of chest pain, heart attack, heart failure and death. Tramadol is often prescribed to older adults with chronic pain, the same population most likely to have cardiovascular disease.

Source: Daily Mail December 26, 2025 21:01 UTC