The third most prescribed drugs in the world should not be heralded as a catchy heal all for all stomach ailments. Prilosec and Nexium come with deadly side effects that doctors and the public know nothing about. Instead of trying to warn the public of these possible effects, manufacturer AstraZeneca Is spending millions on advertising to assure the public that it is perfectly safe. Do you think unlabeled kidney failure is “safe”?
In 1992, it was first discovered that proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) like Prilosec and Nexium have a 5 times risk of causing a horrible kidney infection called acute interstitial nephritis (AIN). AIN is a drug-induced bacterial infection of the kidneys. Nearly all cases of AIN are directly caused from taking PPIs like Nexium and Prilosec. The treatment is either drug removal, dialysis or a kidney transplant. However, PPIs have a high rebound rate. This means that when the drug is stopped most people have such a high dependency on it that they must continue to use it just to feel better. The cycle continues until patients end up on dialysis or death.
AstraZeneca actively worked to keep AIN off the label and was successful until 2014 when the FDA changed it. However, the label change barely warned of anything. It says at any point while using a PPI a possible reaction could occur. There is no mention of kidney disease, renal failure or even telling health professionals of warning signs of AIN.
Instead, AstraZeneca is free to continue to market the purple pill as a magical cure-all for every stomach ailment. PPIs are only supposed to be used to block damage of the esophagus when a person as gastric reflux. It isn’t supposed to be used to treat heartburn or as preventive care. Prilosec and Nexium should only be used short term and in most cases not at all. Over 70% of prescriptions for PPIs are unnecessary.
AstraZeneca keeps getting richer, and no one is warning doctors or patients about these devastating side effects.
If you or a loved one experienced an adverse event from taking a PPI, call us at 877-513-9517 for a free consultation.