Resources for Food and Drug Administration (FDA)

F.D.A. Is Reviewing Heartburn Drugs After Studies Find Possible Heart Risk

www.nytimes.com

Two small studies of the popular heartburn drugs Prilosec and Nexium found that patients who took the medicines over many years had an increased risk of sometimes fatal heart attacks and heart failure.

But officials at the Food and Drug Administration played down the heart worries, saying that other studies suggested no such risks. The F.D.A. will need another three months to complete a thorough analysis of the drugs’ safety, the officials said in an announcement on Thursday.

In the meantime, doctors and patients should continue to prescribe and use the drugs as before, the officials said.

AstraZeneca, the maker of Prilosec and Nexium, released a statement saying that it agreed with the F.D.A.’s preliminary assessment. “Therefore, patients should not change their medication in the light of the study data,” the company said.

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