FAQ: Heartburn Meds and Health Risks
The 16% increased risk ''sounds big, very large," Lacy says. "However, you have to put that in perspective of how many heart attacks actually occur. You possibly would have one extra (heart attack) for every 4,000 people on a PPI."
"I think the real message here is, if there is a relationship -- which I am not convinced about -- the effect is very small," Lacy says.
Does the risk depend on how long you take the drug?
"We can't tell from this study," Lacy says. "We don't know whether it's the length of time on the PPI, the dose, or some other variable."
Were these medicines meant to be used long-term?
People who take prescription PPIs usually stay on them for 6 months, the FDA says. Over-the-counter PPIs are meant to be used for 14 days and only up to three times a year. But doctors say some people stay on them much longer.
For prescription PPIs, there is no set time limit, Lacy says. Some people stay on them for years. But the lower the dose, the better, he says. "Some of my patients have been on PPIs chronically for over one decade, without any apparent side effects at all."
What other risks do users need to know about?
Findings from the two October studies linking PPIs and a risk of chronic kidney disease were to be presented at the American Society of Nephrology's annual meeting. But the studies don't prove cause and effect, meaning researchers can't definitively say that PPIs cause chronic kidney disease. The same link with kidney disease was not seen with H2 blockers.
A researcher on one study, Pradeep Arora, MD, associate professor at the SUNY Buffalo School of Medicine and Biomedical Science, says he recommends PPIs only be used to treat serious disorders such as gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) -- not simple heartburn or indigestion.
The FDA issued a safety warning in 2012 that prescription PPIs may cause low blood levels of magnesium, which can lead to muscle spasms, irregular heartbeat, and seizures.
PPIs are also linked with an increased risk of bone fractures and colon infections, says F. Paul Buckley III, MD, surgical director of the Heartburn and Acid Reflux Center at Baylor Scott & White Healthcare in Round Rock, Texas.
FAQ: Heartburn Meds and Health Risks
The 16% increased risk ''sounds big, very large," Lacy says. "However, you have to put that in perspective of how many heart attacks actually occur. You possibly would have one extra (heart attack) for every 4,000 people on a PPI."
"I think the real message here is, if there is a relationship -- which I am not convinced about -- the effect is very small," Lacy says.
Does the risk depend on how long you take the drug?
"We can't tell from this study," Lacy says. "We don't know whether it's the length of time on the PPI, the dose, or some other variable."
Were these medicines meant to be used long-term?
People who take prescription PPIs usually stay on them for 6 months, the FDA says. Over-the-counter PPIs are meant to be used for 14 days and only up to three times a year. But doctors say some people stay on them much longer.
For prescription PPIs, there is no set time limit, Lacy says. Some people stay on them for years. But the lower the dose, the better, he says. "Some of my patients have been on PPIs chronically for over one decade, without any apparent side effects at all."
What other risks do users need to know about?
Findings from the two October studies linking PPIs and a risk of chronic kidney disease were to be presented at the American Society of Nephrology's annual meeting. But the studies don't prove cause and effect, meaning researchers can't definitively say that PPIs cause chronic kidney disease. The same link with kidney disease was not seen with H2 blockers.
A researcher on one study, Pradeep Arora, MD, associate professor at the SUNY Buffalo School of Medicine and Biomedical Science, says he recommends PPIs only be used to treat serious disorders such as gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) -- not simple heartburn or indigestion.
The FDA issued a safety warning in 2012 that prescription PPIs may cause low blood levels of magnesium, which can lead to muscle spasms, irregular heartbeat, and seizures.
PPIs are also linked with an increased risk of bone fractures and colon infections, says F. Paul Buckley III, MD, surgical director of the Heartburn and Acid Reflux Center at Baylor Scott & White Healthcare in Round Rock, Texas.
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