Popular cardiac drug may prevent pneumonia

If your ACE inhibitor gives you a cough, hang in there—that drug-induced hacking might prevent you from developing a case of pneumonia. This interesting twist on treatment with the popular cardiovascular medication was documented in a recent study in the journal BMJ.

A fair number of people taking angiotensin-converting–enzyme (ACE) inhibitors develop a dry, persistent cough. The researchers pooled findings from 37 prior studies and found that people on ACE inhibitors were 34% less likely to develop pneumonia, which is a significant cause of hospitalization and death in the population of older people who typically take ACE inhibitors.