Introduction and Historical Findings That Focused Nonsteroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drugs as Emerging Pollutant

Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) are among the most consumed pharmaceuticals worldwide due to their significant anti-inflammatory and antipyretic properties. These drugs are mainly excreted from the body in their metabolized form and may enter into the environment through different pathways. In wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs), these contaminants are mainly removed by biological treatment processes. However, even after these treatments, high concentrations of these drugs have been found in WWTPs effluents, surface water, and drinking water. NSAIDs are likely to bioaccumulate in aquatic organisms such as Mytilus galloprovincialis. Furthermore, toxic effects such as oxidative stress, developmental abnormalities, hepatotoxicity, immunosuppressive effects, and hematological alterations have been found in several freshwater species exposed to these pollutants. Therefore, NSAIDs are a threat to the human being as well as to our environment. This review comprehensively discusses the worldwide consumption of NSAIDs, their occurrence in the aquatic environments, and the toxic effects produced by these drugs in nontarget organisms. This is to raise awareness of the negative consequences of their occurrence in freshwater ecosystems and promote the creation of new alternatives for their removal from water.