How reflux drugs could raise fracture risk in babies

File photo: The fracture risk could be due to proton pump inhibitors and histamine H2-receptor antagonists cutting stomach acid needed to absorb calcium – vital for strong bones.

File photo: The fracture risk could be due to proton pump inhibitors and histamine H2-receptor antagonists cutting stomach acid needed to absorb calcium – vital for strong bones.

Published May 8, 2017

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London - Babies under a year old given anti-reflux drugs are nearly a third more likely to break bones later on, a study found.

The fracture risk, put at up to 31 percent, could be due to proton pump inhibitors and histamine H2-receptor antagonists cutting stomach acid needed to absorb calcium – vital for strong bones.

Dr Laura Maldochi, who led the US study at the Walter Reed National Military Medical Centre, Maryland, said the drugs should be reserved for "confirmed serious cases".

It was presented at the 2017 Paediatric Academic Societies Meeting, San Francisco.

Daily Mail

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