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In light of a new study published this week, older people may be more willing to live with a little bit of heartburn. Today’s issue of the Journal of the American Medical Assoctiation (JAMA) reports that seniors who chronically take antacids may be more susceptible to potentially dangerous hip fractures. The key finding: Anti-heartburn medication, known as proton pump inhibitors (PPIs), may work to reduce the body’s absorption of calcium, which in turn can lead to a loss of bone density. Popular PPIs include Prevacid, Nexium, Aciphex, and Protonix.

In the JAMA report, researchers led by the University of Pennsylvania’s Dr. Yu-Xiao Yang noted, “We found a significantly increased risk of hip fracture associated with long-term PPI therapy, particularly among long-term users of high-dose PPI…. Calcium malabsorption secondary to acid suppressive therapy may potentially explain the positive association. Calcium solubility has been believed to be important for its absorption. An acidic environment in the gastrointestinal tract facilitates the release of ionized calcium from insoluble calcium salts.” The team also said that “the increase in fracture risk surged from a modest level with regular-dose PPI therapy to a much higher magnitude with high-dose PPI therapy.”
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The National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), part of the National Institutes of Health, has announced that it is funding five new research projects that will explore the connection between antidepressant drugs, especially serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), and suicidal thoughts and actions. According to the NIMH, “the use of SSRIs in children and adolescents has become controversial” because of the “potential for SSRIs to prompt suicidal thinking” in those cohorts.

“These new, multi-year projects will clarify the connection between SSRI use and suicidality,” said NIMH Director Dr. Thomas Insel. “They will help determine why and how SSRIs may trigger suicidal thinking and behavior in some people but not others, and may lead to new tools that will help us screen for those who are most vulnerable.”
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The good news for Felicia Garza: A Texas judge certified the ruling of a state jury that held the pharmaceutical company Merck & Co. liable for the Vioxx-related death of her husband. The bad news: The same judge decided that the initial damages awarded–to the tune of $32 million–violated state law and therefore reduced the award considerably, to $8.7 million.

Leonel Garza passed away in 2001 after suffering a heart attack that plaintiffs believe was caused by him taking the controversial painkiller Vioxx. This past April, a Texas jury ruled against Merck and awarded the deceased’s family $32 million in damages: $7 million in compensatory damages and $25 million in punitive damages. However, Judge Alex Gabert ruled that the award violated a 2003 state law that set strict limits on punitive and compensatory damages.
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