Proton pump inhibitors linked to heart attacks

摘要

People who take proton pump inhibitors (PPIs), commonly used drugs for heartburn, have a greater risk of suffering a heart attack whether or not they have any history of cardiovascular disease, suggests a data-mining study. Researchers assessed data from 16 million clinical documents relating to 2.9 million individuals for pharmacovigilance information. Patients with gastro-oesophageal reflux disease who took PPIs, whose main action is to reduce the production of gastric acid, were more likely than the general population to suffer a heart attack (adjusted odds ratio 1.16; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.09-1.24), while alternative heartburn therapies, H2 blockers, were not associated with an increased risk.