Thank you for the post. This has been a very big topic of conversation in our family lately. The research is suggesting that long term use of Proton Pump Inhibitors may increase the risk of hip and other bone fractures. The research was done by looking back at patient history in patients over 50 years old. Those who were on PPIs for longer than 5 years had an increased risk of hip fracture, more than 7 years increased the risk of mulitple bone fractures. They are now looking at why this may be and are doing more studies.

One of the full text research articles can be found at:

http://www.cmaj.ca/cgi/content/full/179/4/319

The important thing at this point is to not panic but to ask your doctor about your specific risk and ask if a bone density screening would be appropriate for your situation. If you are going to be on PPIs for long periods you may want to see if periodic monitoring of your bones should be done.