A Type Of Drug Used By 50 Million Americans Has Been Linked To An Increased Risk Of Death, Washington University School of Medicine Reveals

Widely used heartburn drugs are associated with increased risk of death, and the longer a person uses the drugs, the greater the risk, new research suggests.

Proton pump inhibitors or PPIs, have been tied to a wide range of side effects including fractures, dementia, heart disease, pneumonia, and kidney disease, the study's senior author, Dr. Ziyad Al-Aly of Washington University's School of Medicine in St. Louis, told Reuters Health in a telephone interview.

"We took it a bit further and asked is this class associated with a higher risk of death, and the answer is yes," he said.

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