Sufferers of chronic heartburn, GERD and other acid reflux
disorders rely on anti heartburn medication to give them relief
from the painful, uncomfortable symptoms associated with their
conditions. However, a new study has shown that while those
drugs used to treat heartburn may help to relieve their main
symptoms, they do pose an increased risk of patients developing
pneumonia. Chun-Sick Eom, MD, MPH, from Seoul National
University Hospital in South Korea, conducted a study on
patients using these drugs, referencing patient records from as
far back as 1985. In fact, one in every 200 patients being
treated with these types of drugs, or 0.5%, developed pneumonia.
Histamine 2 receptor antagonists, like Peptid, Tagamet and
Zantac, were also found to cause an increased risk of pneumonia.
The link between drugs treat heartburn and pneumonia is not
known, but Eom and his team speculate that by suppressing the
acid in the stomach from traveling up through the esophagus, an
environment that is conducive to bacteria g