Esomeprazole Precautions and Warnings

When it comes to esomeprazole, precautions and warnings to be aware of include things such as limiting your daily dose of the medication if you have severe liver disease and avoiding breastfeeding while taking the drug. Other precautions and warnings for esomeprazole users involve potential drug interactions. People who are allergic to substituted benzimidazoles should not take esomeprazole.

 

Esomeprazole Precautions and Warnings: What to Tell Your Doctor

Before taking esomeprazole (marketed under the brand name Nexium®), you should let your healthcare provider know if you:
 
  • Have liver disease or liver failure
  • Are pregnant or breastfeeding
  • Have any allergies.
     
Also, tell your healthcare provider about all the medicines you are currently taking, including prescription and non-prescription medicines, vitamins, and herbal supplements.
 

Some Esomeprazole Precautions and Warnings

Some precautions and warnings to be aware of concerning esomeprazole include the following:
 
  • Esomeprazole can interact with certain medications (see Esomeprazole Drug Interactions).
     
  • Esomeprazole is considered a pregnancy category B drug. This means that it has not been studied in pregnant women. However, when studied in animals, it showed no negative effects on unborn babies. If you are pregnant, discuss the safety of taking esomeprazole with your healthcare provider before starting the medication.
     
  • People with severe liver disease should not exceed a daily dose of 20 mg.
     
  • It is not known whether esomeprazole passes through breast milk. Therefore, it is often recommended that women who are taking esomeprazole avoid breastfeeding.
     
(Esomeprazole Precautions and Warnings Continued: Page 2)
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Written by/reviewed by: Kristi Monson, PharmD; Arthur Schoenstadt, MD
Last reviewed by: Kristi Monson, PharmD;