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from the so-much-for-the-spicy-meatball-sub dept.
Arthur T Knackerbracket has found the following story:
Taking popular heartburn drugs for prolonged periods has been linked to serious kidney problems, including kidney failure. The sudden onset of kidney problems often serves as a red flag for doctors to discontinue their patients' use of so-called proton pump inhibitors (PPIs), which are sold under the brand names Prevacid, Prilosec, Nexium and Protonix, among others.
But a new study evaluating the use of PPIs in 125,000 patients indicates that more than half of patients who develop chronic kidney damage while taking the drugs don't experience acute kidney problems beforehand, meaning patients may not be aware of a decline in kidney function, according to researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis and the Veterans Affairs St. Louis Health Care System. Therefore, people who take PPIs, and their doctors, should be more vigilant in monitoring use of these medications.
[...] More than 15 million Americans suffering from heartburn, ulcers and acid reflux have prescriptions for PPIs, which bring relief by reducing gastric acid. Many millions more purchase the drugs over-the-counter and take them without being under a doctor's care.
[...] "Doctors must pay careful attention to kidney function in their patients who use PPIs, even when there are no signs of problems," cautioned Al-Aly, who also is the VA's associate chief of staff for research and education and co-director of the VA's Clinical Epidemiology Center. "In general, we always advise clinicians to evaluate whether PPI use is medically necessary in the first place because the drugs carry significant risks, including a deterioration of kidney function."
Journal Reference:
Xie Y, Bowe B, Li T, Xian H, Yan Y, Al-Aly Z. Long Term Kidney Outcomes among Proton Pump Inhibitors Users without Intervening Acute Kidney Injury. Kidney International. Feb. 22, 2017. DOI: 10.1016/j.kint.2016.12.021
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(Score: 2) by MichaelDavidCrawford on Saturday February 25 2017, @05:48AM
the risk to one's kidney's may be worth it.
Yes I Have No Bananas. [gofundme.com]
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday February 25 2017, @07:14AM
Better to stop eating food that gives you heartburn. Seriously.
Careful about the acid rebound thing though: http://www.refluxmd.com/what-to-expect-if-you-reduce-ppi-use/ [refluxmd.com]
This might be another way people get "hooked" on the drug - they stop taking the drug, they experience the rebound so they go back on the drug.
(Score: 1) by purple_cobra on Sunday February 26 2017, @02:30PM
I've probably bored people here with this in the past but yes, long-term reflux can cause a condition called Barrett's Oesophagus; while you aren't guaranteed to get oesophageal cancer from that, it is a pre-cancerous change so it does mean that cancer is more likely to form from those cells. Barrett's patients should be on some form of acid suppression and should also have routine surveillance gastroscopy (I think the recommendation is every 2-3 years, but I'm not a doctor). A blood test to check for anything untoward from the medication, or even an ultrasound, might well also be recommended to ensure the acid suppression isn't causing any harm. Medicine is about doing what harms the patient the least, when you think about it; there's usually a trade-off in any treatment in terms of side-effects and that's why a good doctor will help you make an informed choice, not just send you away with a prescription or a date for surgery.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday February 27 2017, @04:37PM
I have Barrett's, and I got to say, this kidney news has been rather depressing. Everything you say is correct. At my last endoscopy I asked my doctor about the kidney evidence and he said basically, well, pick your poison, but esophageal cancer is one of the pretty horrible ones to get, so you go with the lesser of two evils.