A 58-year-old man with long-standing hypertension, diabetes and knee osteoarthritis had been struggling with worsening pain through the summer. Like millions of Indians, he turned to over-the-counter painkillers for quick relief. Without consulting a doctor, he began taking ibuprofen frequently — sometimes two to three times a day, often on an empty stomach. Homebound and in pain, he was eating and drinking less water than usual. At the same time, he was already on blood pressure medication and metformin for diabetes. Then his body began sending warning signals. His stools turned black. He felt persistently weak. Nausea set in. There was a burning discomfort in his stomach that he dismissed as acidity. He noticed his urine output had reduced and he felt unusually lethargic. By the time he reached the hospital, the consequences of his self-medication and overuse of an ibuprofen-paracetamol drug (he took Combiflam) had become clear.…