Prilosec, Nexium Acute Interstitial Nephritis Lawyers

Side effects of Nexium, Prilosec and other popular heart burn medications, which are part of a class of drugs known as proton pump inhibitors (PPI), may increase the risk of a drug-induced form of kidney damage, known as Acute Interstitial Nephritis or AIN.

Acute Interstitial Nephritis from Nexium or Prilosec can cause severe and devastating injury, potential resulting in chronic kidney disease, renal failure or wrongful death.

As a result of the drug makers’ failure to adequately warn about the risks associated with their medications, acute interstitial nephritis (AIN) lawsuits were previously investigated for individuals who suffered any of the following side effects;

  • Increased Or Decreased Urination
  • Blood In Urine or Dark Urine
  • Nausea and Vomiting
  • Fevers
  • Rash
  • Drowsiness
  • Confusion
  • Unexplained Swelling
  • Sudden Weight Gain

Acute Interstitial Nephritis Side Effects

Acute Interstitial Nephritis (AIN) occurs when the interstitium of the kidneys surrounding the tubules become inflamed. It is a leading cause of acute renal failure, with some estimates suggesting that it causes 15% of all kidney failure cases.

In addition to infections, drug side effects are one of the leading causes of AIN. In those cases, the drug causing the kidney problem must be identified and stopped before the patient suffers acute renal failure.

Proton Pump Inhibitors (PPI) are a particularly popular class of medications that have been linked to an acute interstitial nephritis risk, with medications like Nexium, Prilosec, Protonix, Prevacid, Dexilant, AcipHex and others potentially responsible for thousands of AIN cases each year.

In December 2014, the FDA required drug makers to add information about the potential AIN side effects of Nexium and other proton pump inhibitor heartburn medications. The “Warnings and Precautions” section of the drug label was updated to indicate that the medications are contrindicated for individuals with AIN, stating:

Acute interstitial nephritis has been observed in patients taking PPIs, including Nexium. Acute interstitial nephritis may occur at any point during PPI therapy and is generally attributed to an idiopathic hypersensitivity reaction. Discontinue Nexium if acute interstitial nephritis develops.

Prior to this label change, consumers and medical providers were provided no information about the potential link between Nexium or Prilosec and acute interstitial nephritis, potentially resulting in many individuals continuing to use the heartburn medications, further increasing the risk of severe kidney damage, kidney failure or death.

In April 2015, a study published in the medical journal CMAJ concluded that individuals who started using Nexium and similar drugs may face a three times the risk of acute interstitial nephritis (AIN).

AIN Diagnosis

There are a number of ways to diagnose AIN, and sometimes it can be determined by urine analysis. However, the “gold standard” for AIN diagnosis is a renal biopsy, which is a procedure that extracts a sample of kidney tissue for analysis in a lab. Renal biopsies often come after a urine analysis suggests that there is a problem.

The most common form of kidney biopsy is a percutaneous biopsy, which involves the use of a thin needle inserted through the skin to extract the tissue. This often involves the use of ultrasound or a CT scan to properly guide the needle. The patient has to lie on their stomach for about 30 minutes, getting an local anesthesia treatment to numb the area, and then holding their breath as the needle is inserted repeatedly to extract samples.

However, in some cases a doctor may decide its best to do an open, or surgical, biopsy, in which the doctor cuts and pulls back the skin near the kidneys to obtain the sample. This procedure, though more invasive, allows the doctor to look at the kidneys and decide where is the best location to take the sample.

Prilosec, Nexium Acute Interstitial Nephritis (AIN) Lawyers

The lawyers at Saiontz & Kirk, P.A. previously pursued product liability lawsuits for individuals diagnosed with acute interstitial nephritis (AIN) from Nexium, Prilosec or another PPI, and provided free consultations and case evaluations for individuals who received a kidney biopsy to diagnose problems following use of the popular heart burn medications:

New proton pump inhibitor (PPI) cases are no longer being investigated by Saiontz & Kirk, P.A. The content on this page is for informational purposes only.