Nexium can cause injuries

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If you are over the age of 50 and have been taking prescription antacids for more than a year, you face an increased risk of hip fracture – far higher than for any other group of people.

University of Pennsylvania researchers found that people taking powerful anti-heartburn drugs called proton pump inhibitors increase the risk of hip fractures because the drugs inhibit calcium absorption.

Long-term use of powerful, popular antacid drugs such as Nexium and Prevacid – some of the most widely used and heavily promoted prescription drugs in the U.S. – can increase hip fracture rates by nearly 50 percent, according to study author Dr. Yu-Xiao Yang.

"Men in the study had a higher drug-associated risk of hip fracture than women, possibly because women may be more aware of osteoporosis and may get more calcium in their diets, Yang said. He plans more research on whether calcium-rich diets or calcium supplements can prevent the problem." -- CNN

What is the danger?

Among the elderly, hip fractures have a death rate of 20 percent during the first year after the fracture. For those who survive this period, one in five requires nursing home care, an emergency department visit, hospitalization, surgery and rehabilitation, all with huge health-care costs.

Yang, an assistant professor of medicine and epidemiology, found that taking a proton pump inhibitor for more than one year increased the risk of hip fracture by 44 percent, compared with people not taking these medications.

The risk was 2.6 times higher among people who took high doses over a long period. The risk of hip fracture increased with both the dosage and the duration of proton pump inhibitor therapy.

Bones naturally become thinner as people grow older. This is because soon after middle age, the body's production of new bone can't keep up with the reabsorption of existing bone cells.

As this occurs, the bones lose minerals, heaviness and structure, making them weaker and more likely to break.