The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has warned patients to restrict combining Plavix with Nexium, Prilosec along with nine other drugs which includes Prozac and Tagamet.
 
FDA says that the anti-clotting drug Plavix may become dangerously less effective when combined with these drugs.
 
They stop an enzyme in the body which turns the drug into its active form. Plavix ranks second in the most-prescribed drugs globally.
 
The speculations regarding potent stomach-acid-reducing drug Prilosec reducing the benefit of plavix but data from more recent studies indicated that Prilosec and a similar drug Nexium might help patients on Plavix.
 
FDA safety evaluator Mary Ross Southworth, PharmD, said at a news conference, "We think there is a significant interaction. In general, patients should avoid the combination of these two medications."
 
It is recommended that patients should not stop consuming any of these drug combinations without consulting their doctors. It is dangerous to stop taking medication without professional medical advice.
 
Patients taking Plavix are advised to call their doctors at the earliest possible to discuss all the other drugs and supplements they are taking.