A new heartburn drug lawsuit has been filed against several major drug manufacturers, including AstraZeneca, Takeda Pharmaceuticals, and Procter & Gamble, alleging their heartburn medications caused a Louisiana woman to suffer serious injuries.

Over 60 million Americans experience heartburn, a major symptom of GERD, at least once a month and some studies have suggested more than 15 million Americans experience heartburn on a daily basis.

About 21 million Americans used one or more prescription proton pump inhibitors (PPIs), commonly known as heartburn medications, in 2009 accounting for nearly 20 percent of the drugs’ global sales and earnings an estimated $11 billion annually.

Plaintiff Denise C. alleges, however, that these drugs resulted in serious kidney related injuries.

Denise ingested PPIs, including Prevacid, Prilosec, and Nexium between 2013 and 2016 for the treatment of increased gastric acid and reportedly suffered chronic kidney disease, acute kidney injury, and kidney failure as a result of using these medications.

According to her heartburn drug lawsuit, Denise requires ongoing medical care and treatment. She claims she would not have used PPIs had the drug makers properly disclosed the risks associated with long-term use of heartburn medications.

Denise is seeking judgment against the defendants for actual damages to be determined at trial. She has requested a trial by jury for this heartburn drug lawsuit.

Proton Pump Inhibitors and Kidney Failure

Though PPIs have been linked with side effects in the past, recent studies linking them to kidney failure have been particularly concerning.

The American Society of Nephrology reported on a PPI study showing a purported link to kidney failure.

Led by Dr. Pradeep Arora of SUNY-Buffalo, researchers looked at data from about 70,000 patients between 2001 and 2008.

They found that about a quarter of them who developed chronic kidney disease had been taking PPIs. They also found that this same group had a higher risk for mortality compared to those not taking PPIs.

Researchers from this study theorized that PPIs may increase risk of kidney disease because they are known to cause nephritis (inflammation of the kidneys) and because they can reduce levels of magnesium in the blood. Over time, low magnesium levels can also damage the kidneys.

In April 2016, another study again reported on the connection between PPIs and CKD.

This time, researchers examined data from the Department of Veterans Affairs national databases including about 173,000 participants.

They followed these participants over a period of five years and found that PPIs were associated with a 96 percent increased risk of kidney failure and a 26 percent increased risk of chronic kidney disease.

After five years, about 15 percent of PPI users were diagnosed with kidney disease, compared to 11 percent of those taking H2-blockers.

Patients taking the drugs for 1-2 years were also three times more likely to develop kidney failure than those who used them for less than a month.

Filing a Heartburn Drug Lawsuit

Manufacturers of PPI drugs have been accused of failing to conduct adequate studies on their products before releasing them on the market, and for failing to include adequate warnings about the risks of side effects.

If you or a loved one took a proton pump inhibitor and suffered a serious injury, you may be eligible to file a heartburn drug lawsuit.

The Heartburn Drug Lawsuit is filed in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana, Lafayette Division. A case number was not immediately available.