In a recent study, researchers found that many people have concerns about drug proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) and they attempt to discontinue their use without telling their doctors.
The research was conducted by a team at Michigan Medicine.
PPIs are one of the most commonly used medications in the United States.
While PPIs are effective at treating symptoms such as heartburn or an upset stomach, they also have a role in preventing bleeding ulcers in patients at increased risk.
However, side effects have been reported in different PPI studies, including bone fractures, infectious diarrhea, kidney disease, and vitamin and mineral deficiencies.
In the study, the team conducted an online survey to adults who take PPIs for gastroesophageal reflux disease, or GERD, a digestive problem that affects millions of Americans every year.
About 71% of the surveyed participants were women, and 91% were white. The average patient participant’s age was 49.
The team found most of the people reported using PPIs at least daily, while 73% said that they took PPIs for more than two years.
About 90% of surveyed people reported moderate to complete resolution of GERD symptoms upon using their prescribed PPIs.
In addition, 89% of participants stated they started using PPIs based on a provider’s recommendation.
While all the patients were using the PPI to treat GERD symptoms, 24% also benefitted from PPI for the prevention of peptic ulcer bleeding, even if this was not the main reason for using the medication.
The team also found that 79% of patients had at least some concerns about PPI side effects, even if they couldn’t necessarily name any specific side effects.
In addition, nearly 40% of their sample had attempted to discontinue their PPI use in the past because of these concerns, while a large majority of them — 83% — did so without a doctor’s recommendation.
The team found patients who were at high risk for ulcer bleeding were no less likely to have tried stopping their PPI.
This means that patients were truly taking matters into their own hands when it comes to these drugs and their use.
The team hopes to explore the reasons such a large proportion of their sample had tried to discontinue their PPIs without the recommendation of their health care providers.
Future work also needs to discover more about what patients and their providers understand the uses for PPIs and when it is or is not advisable to stop use.
One author of the study is Jacob Kurlander, M.D., a clinical lecturer and gastroenterologist at Michigan Medicine.
The results were recently published in The American Journal of Gastroenterology.
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