Side effects

Yes. It's a good PPI. 40mg pantoprazole is equivalent to 20 mg omeprazole. Many people find they tolerate pantoprazole better than omperazole.

NO

Prior to having a fundoplication operation to reduce reflux, I was on PPIs for 15 years. Most of th etime I was on omeprazole but wondering whether another problem I had was to do with the side effects of the medication, my doctor prescribed pantoprazole instead for a while as it is felt it has fewest side effects of all the PPIs.

The side effects we're talking about are actually quite rare. (The side effects most people complain about in relation to PPIs are those of induced hypochlorhydria from too high a dose for too long a period.)

This site has recently published a blog on (general) drug side effects: https://patient.info/blogs/sarah-says/2016/01/side-effects-what-everyone-needs-to-know?

Thank you guys for your input. Lucille

I was on Omeprazzole 40mg per day for 4 weeks. I stopped by taking 3 days 20 mgs daily and one day a 10 mg dose. That was it. I have had heartburn, but stayed away from pills. Am eating boiled carrots, potaotes, chicken, chamomile tea and finally after 2 weeks of discomfort I can say that I am finally feeling better. Stick to the bland diet for as long as you can. A fringe benefit? I lost 11 pounds in two months! I still have "toilet" issues, some days very soft, some days normal, today I had a tiny amount of blood in my stools, but to be safe I have a meeting with a gastroenterologist in a few days. Finally Meds are destroyng and not helping us! Yesterday, I started adding a little fennel and parsley over my boiled food, because both of those are calming for stomach issues.