Contraindications
Nexium® should not be taken if hypersensitivity to the active substance esomeprazole is known. In addition, as mentioned above, medication with the AIDS drugs Atazanavir and Nelfinavir argues against taking Nexium®. There are no studies on the use of Nexium® in children, so Nexium® should not be used in children. Pregnant women should only take Nexium® under the supervision of a doctor and not while breastfeeding.
Special features
Care must be taken to ensure that Nexium® is not crumbled, crushed or otherwise broken up. This would destroy the acid-proof capsule and destroy the medication in the stomach without it being able to exert its effect.
Price
Nexium® is more expensive compared to other proton pump inhibitors with comparable effects. For example, the Nexium® Mups 20mg pack (15 pieces) costs 29.55€ and the Nexium® Mups 40mg pack (15 pieces) 36.38€ (as of June 2014). Reproductions (medically: generics) of the drug with the active ingredient omeprazole sometimes cost significantly less, with the same effect. The drug Esomep, also from the company AstraZeneca, contains the same active ingredient and is also otherwise identical to the original, but about 20% cheaper than Nexium®.
History
Before Nexium®, the drugs Antra® and Prilosec®, which contained the active ingredient omeprazole, were on the market, also from the company AstraZeneca. After the patent for the active ingredient omeprazole had expired in 1999, the drug Nexium® with the active ingredient esomeprazole from AstraZeneca was launched on the market in 2000. The only difference to its predecessor was the degradation of the drug, which was now somewhat slower, which meant that the active ingredient remained in the blood for longer. In 1998, the pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca developed a new dosage form for the group of proton pump inhibitors with the active substance omeprazole: the so-called MUPS (Multiple Unit Pellet System), which according to AstraZeneca are better absorbed. Nexium® brought the manufacturer AstraZeneca sales of 5 billion dollars in 2009 alone.
