HOUSTON, April 19, 2011 /PRNewswire/ — An Ohio woman
suffered bone deterioration and broken bones because of hidden
risks with pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca’s acid reflux drug
Nexium, The Gibson Law Firm alleges
in a lawsuit filed today in Texas federal court.

Filed in the U.S. District Court in Houston, the lawsuit
alleges 58-year-old Ginny Begin, of Toledo, Ohio, suffered
serious bone deterioration after taking Nexium on a daily
basis between 2003 and early 2011.

In March, the FDA issued a safety alert stating use
of prescription “PPI’s,” including Nexium, results in an
increased risk of fractures. PPI’s are prescription-strength
proton pump inhibitors. In May 2010, the FDA mandated
manufacturers of PPI’s such as Nexium to include
safety information and warnings about the increased risk of
osteoporosis and fractures associated with PPIs.

The lawsuit alleges, “[A]s early as 2006, studies
found PPI’s, by reducing hydrochloric acid in the stomach,
interfere with the body’s ability to absorb calcium, thus
speeding up bone loss and leading to an increased number
of fractures. In total, six studies have found the risk
of fracture significantly increased for those patients over 50
years of age who took a prescription-strength PPI, like
Nexium, or who took any PPI regularly for more than one
year. Specifically, use of PPI’s increases the risk of
fractures in women up to 34 percent.”

According to the complaint, Begin snapped a leg bone
(left fibula) in July 2005 while walking. In June 2007, the
same bone in Begin’s leg and three bones in her ankle broke as
she walked down stairs.

Jason A. Gibson of The Gibson Law Firm in Houston
represents Begin. He stated, “Despite knowing Nexium
causes bones to severely deteriorate and br

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