Study Shows Heartburn Medications May Cause Kidney Failure

A new research study indicates that heartburn medications could most likely increase the risk of a kidney failure. The study also suggests that the long-term use of such medications may also lead to other health issues related to kidney diseases.

A heartburn drug called proton-pump inhibitors or PPIs are a type of medication that reduces the gastric acid being produced, which is important in treating the gastric disorders. Today, an estimated number of 15 million Americans are prescribed with PPIs, though this figure could be higher since these drugs may be availed without prescriptions over the counter, CBS News reported.

The heartburn-related study was conducted by researchers from the Clinical Epidemiology Center of VA St. Louis Health Care System and the St. Louis' Washington University. Based on the research, it was found out that patients must only use PPIs when medically needed, and must limit the duration of exposure to a minimum requirement to treat any underlying medical condition.  

For study purposes, two sets of patients were compared. One group consisted of 20,000 patients that were newly prescribed with an alternate drug for the treatment of the same gastric disorders like the H2 receptor blockers, while the second group comprised of 173,000 patients that were newly prescribed with PPIs.

After five years, the data analysis revealed that the 15 percent of those who used PPIs was diagnosed with a chronic kidney disease, compared to the 11% of patients on H2 blockers. Given the age and other diseases, the study suggests a 28 percent increased risk of acquiring a chronic kidney disease for PPI users. 

Other heartburn-related research which was conducted recently by researchers from the John Hopkins University and published on January 16 in JAMA Internal Medicine had also found a similar analysis that links the higher risk of kidney damage related to an increased PPI dosage.

Heartburn medication study was already published in the Journal of the American Society of Nephrology.