I have had acid reflux for many years. About six months ago, a doctor looked down my esophagus and into my stomach (a test he called an upper endoscopy) because the symptoms were getting worse. My esophagus was inflamed, and I was told to take pantoprazole indefinitely. But now I rarely have heartburn. Do I really need to stay on this medication forever?
Answer:
Pantoprazole is a proton pump inhibitor (PPI). Drugs in this class are the most potent stomach acid inhibitors. Other proton pump inhibitors include omeprazole, esomeprazole, lansoprazole, dexlansoprazole, and rabeprazole.
There is no simple yes or no answer to your question, but here is how I approach this very common situation….