Risek Capsules 20mg and 40mg
Getz PharmaDRAP reg. 019364
Prescription required
Same day or next day in Karachi, Lahore, Islamabad, Rawalpindi for orders confirmed before 6pm. Tracked courier, 2 to 4 working days everywhere else. Delivery Rs 250 in Rawalpindi and Islamabad, Rs 300 everywhere else, cash on delivery. Delivery details
Prices in PKR, checked 15 October 2026.
What Risek is
A capsule containing omeprazole, 20 mg or 40 mg, a proton pump inhibitor that reduces stomach acid, made by Getz Pharma.
- If you are looking for “Risek tablets”: Risek comes as capsules and as Insta sachets, not as tablets: both are on this page.
- Enteric-coated capsule: the omeprazole is in enteric-coated pellets.
- Registered with DRAP under number 019364.
- Registered with DRAP under number 022109.
- Prescription: Getz Pharma’s Pakistani leaflets for the capsules and the Insta sachets both say “To be sold on prescription of a registered medical practitioner only.” That is the condition of sale in Pakistan, so we dispense every Risek pack on prescription. Our pharmacist answers questions on WhatsApp before you order.
When to see a doctor instead
Some symptoms need a doctor, not a pharmacy remedy. UK product information warns that treatment can ease symptoms and delay the diagnosis of something more serious, so these need investigating, not treating.
| Source | See a doctor if you have |
|---|---|
| US label: do not use, see your doctor | Trouble or pain swallowing food; vomiting with blood; bloody or black stools; heartburn with light-headedness, sweating or dizziness; chest or shoulder pain with shortness of breath, sweating, pain spreading to the arms, neck or shoulders, or light-headedness; frequent chest pain. |
| US label: ask a doctor before use | Heartburn for more than three months; frequent wheezing, particularly with heartburn; unexplained weight loss; nausea or vomiting; stomach pain. |
| UK product information, non-prescription form | A previous stomach ulcer or stomach surgery; treating indigestion or heartburn continuously for four weeks or more; jaundice or severe liver disease; age over 55 with new or recently changed symptoms. |
What is in each capsule
From the label claims in DRAP’s registry. The capsules: “Omeprazole Enteric Coated Pellets Eq to Omeprazole”, 20mg or 40mg. The Insta sachets: “Omeprazole USP………..20mg [or 40mg] Sodium Bicarbonate USP (as buffer)….1680mg”.
| Product | Active ingredients | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Risek 20mg capsule | Active ingredients: Omeprazole (enteric-coated pellets) | Amount: 20 mg |
| Risek 40mg capsule | Active ingredients: Omeprazole (enteric-coated pellets) | Amount: 40 mg |
| Risek Insta 20mg sachet | Active ingredients: Omeprazole; sodium bicarbonate (as buffer) | Amount: 20 mg; 1,680 mg |
| Risek Insta 40mg sachet | Active ingredients: Omeprazole; sodium bicarbonate (as buffer) | Amount: 40 mg; 1,680 mg |
What it is used for
UK product information for the non-prescription form: short-term relief of reflux symptoms, such as heartburn and acid regurgitation, in adults.
- On prescription, omeprazole is also used for stomach and duodenal ulcers and reflux oesophagitis (UK product information).
How long it should be taken
In Pakistan Risek is sold on prescription, and your doctor sets the course. In the US and the UK, where 20 mg omeprazole is also sold without a prescription, the guidance for that use is a short course.
| Source | What it says |
|---|---|
| US over-the-counter label | The US over-the-counter label says not to use it for more than 14 days unless a doctor directs, and not to repeat a 14-day course more often than every four months. |
| NHS | Do not take omeprazole for longer than 2 weeks if you bought it without a prescription. See a GP if your symptoms get worse or do not get better. |
| UK prescription product information | Longer courses, set by condition. For example, most duodenal ulcers heal within two weeks; if reflux symptoms are not controlled after four weeks, further investigation is recommended. |
What long-term use means
What regulators and product information say about taking it for months or longer.
| Risk | What the source says |
|---|---|
| Low magnesium | US FDA Drug Safety Communication, 2 March 2011: “Low magnesium levels can be associated with long-term use of Proton Pump Inhibitor drugs (PPIs)”. The UK MHRA reports some cases after 3 months and most after a year, and advises considering a magnesium test before starting and periodically during prolonged treatment. |
| Diarrhoea from Clostridioides difficile | US FDA Drug Safety Communication, 8 February 2012: seek care for diarrhoea that does not improve, and use the lowest dose for the shortest time appropriate. Unlike the row above, the FDA does not tie this to long-term use: “There were limited data on the relationship between the risk of C. difficile infection or CDAD and PPI dose and duration of use.” |
| Bone fractures | UK product information: especially at high doses and for more than a year, these medicines may modestly increase the risk of hip, wrist and spine fracture, mainly in older people or with other risk factors; fracture is listed as an uncommon side effect. The US label says the risk was higher with high-dose use and use for a year or longer. |
| Vitamin B12 | UK product information: omeprazole may reduce vitamin B12 absorption, which matters on long-term treatment. |
| Regular check-ups | UK product information: on long-term treatment, “especially when exceeding a treatment period of 1 year, patients should be kept under regular surveillance.” |
Both FDA communications also say: do not stop taking a prescription acid medicine without talking to your healthcare professional.
After stopping, stomach acid production returns gradually over 3 to 5 days (US label).
Other medicines
The NHS names other acid medicines (such as lansoprazole and famotidine), digoxin, warfarin and clopidogrel, diazepam, phenytoin, St John’s wort, and the HIV medicines nelfinavir and atazanavir. The table adds the rest from the US label and UK product information.
| Medicine | What to do | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Clopidogrel (Plavix) | What to do: See the notice at the top of this page. | Source: US Plavix label; MHRA; UK product information |
| Nelfinavir | What to do: Must not be taken together: contraindicated. | Source: UK product information; Getz Pharma’s Risek capsule and Insta leaflets |
| Rilpivirine (an HIV medicine) | What to do: Must not be taken with the Insta sachets: contraindicated. | Source: Getz Pharma’s Risek Insta leaflet |
| Atazanavir | What to do: Avoid together. | Source: US label; UK product information: not recommended |
| Methotrexate | What to do: Levels may rise. With high-dose methotrexate, temporarily stopping omeprazole may be considered. | Source: UK product information; US label |
| Digoxin | What to do: Monitor digoxin levels. | Source: US label; UK product information |
| Warfarin | What to do: Monitor INR. | Source: US label |
| Phenytoin | What to do: Monitor phenytoin levels. | Source: UK product information; US label |
| Citalopram | What to do: The US omeprazole label says the citalopram dose should be limited to 20 mg a day. | Source: US label |
| Tacrolimus | What to do: Monitor tacrolimus levels and kidney function. | Source: UK product information |
| Ketoconazole, itraconazole, posaconazole, erlotinib | What to do: Omeprazole reduces their absorption by lowering stomach acid. Avoid together with posaconazole and erlotinib. | Source: UK product information |
| St John’s wort, rifampicin | What to do: They reduce omeprazole levels. The US label says to avoid them together. | Source: US label; UK product information |
Side effects
The NHS says the chance of serious side effects can be higher if you take omeprazole for a long time: a year or more.
| How often | Side effects | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Common | Side effects: Headache; stomach pain; feeling sick or being sick; constipation or diarrhoea; farting more than usual. | Source: NHS |
| Common | Side effects: Fundic gland polyps (benign growths in the stomach). | Source: UK product information |
| Uncommon | Side effects: Fracture of the hip, wrist or spine. | Source: UK product information |
| Rare | Side effects: Tubulointerstitial nephritis, a kidney inflammation that can progress to kidney failure. | Source: UK product information |
| Frequency not known | Side effects: Low magnesium; subacute cutaneous lupus erythematosus, a skin condition. | Source: UK product information |
Pregnancy and breastfeeding
The sources disagree, so ask your doctor: the guidance differs between countries, and between the brand’s leaflet and current UK information.
| Source | What it says |
|---|---|
| NHS | You can usually take omeprazole in pregnancy and while breastfeeding, but check with a pharmacist or doctor first. |
| UK product information | Can be used during pregnancy: three prospective studies, with more than 1,000 exposed pregnancy outcomes, showed no adverse effects on the pregnancy or the baby. It passes into breast milk but is not likely to affect the baby at normal doses. |
| US label | There are no adequate and well-controlled studies in pregnant women. Available data fail to show an increased risk of major birth defects with first-trimester use. |
| Getz Pharma’s Risek leaflet | Older wording: no adequate or well-controlled studies in pregnant women; use only if the potential benefit justifies the potential risk to the baby. |
Kidneys, liver, older people and children
Kidney function and age do not change the dose for adults; liver function may.
- Kidneys: no dose change is needed for impaired kidney function (UK product information).
- Warning: Liver: Getz Pharma’s Pakistani capsule leaflet says “A maximum daily dose of 20mg is recommended for patients with impaired hepatic function.” That is a ceiling, not a dose to take: with liver disease the medicine stays in the body longer. The US label recommends a reduced dose for maintenance treatment of erosive oesophagitis.
- Older people: no dose change is needed (UK product information).
- Warning: Children: on prescription, UK product information licenses it from age 1 and 10 kg for reflux. The UK non-prescription form is for adults aged 18 and over only.
Risek Insta sachets: sodium, how to take them, and who must not
Each Insta sachet contains 1,680 mg of sodium bicarbonate, by DRAP’s registered label claim for both strengths. The US label for Zegerid, the same formulation, says each packet holds 460 mg of sodium. This is about the sachets only: the capsules’ label claim lists omeprazole alone.
- Warning: Zegerid’s label: “The sodium content … should be taken into consideration when administering to patients on a sodium-restricted diet or those at risk for developing congestive heart failure.” If either applies to you, ask your doctor before using the sachets.
- Warning: It says to avoid them in “Bartter’s syndrome, hypokalemia, hypocalcemia, and problems with acid-base balance”: a rare kidney disorder, low potassium, low calcium, or a problem with the body’s acid-base balance.
- Long-term use, from the same label: with calcium or milk it “can cause milk-alkali syndrome”; sodium bicarbonate “may lead to systemic alkalosis”; and the extra sodium “can produce edema and weight gain”.
- Warning: Its patient guide: “Tell your doctor right away if you have confusion, shaking hands, dizziness, muscle twitching, nausea, vomiting, and numbness or tingling in the face, arms, or legs.”
- Warning: Must not be taken by anyone on rilpivirine or nelfinavir, both HIV medicines: Getz Pharma’s Risek Insta leaflet lists both as contraindications.
- Getz’s Insta leaflet says to take it “on an empty stomach at least one hour before a meal”. The same leaflet reports, for the 40 mg sachet, that exposure to omeprazole was about 27% lower when it was taken an hour after a meal than an hour before one.
- The same leaflet says to mix the sachet with water only: “DO NOT USE OTHER LIQUIDS OR FOODS.” It gives no reason.
- “Do not substitute two packets of 20 mg … with one packet of 40 mg”, Zegerid’s label says, because of the sodium bicarbonate; Getz’s Insta leaflet gives the same instruction. Both strengths carry the same 1,680 mg, so two 20 mg sachets give twice the sodium of one 40 mg sachet.
- Children: “Safety and effectiveness of ZEGERID have not been established in pediatric patients.”
- Pregnancy: for the sodium bicarbonate, “Available data with sodium bicarbonate use in pregnant women are insufficient to identify a drug associated risk of major birth defects or miscarriage.” Breastfeeding: the label says both ingredients, omeprazole and sodium bicarbonate, are present in breast milk.
- We dispense both sachets on prescription, as Getz’s Pakistani leaflet requires. Before dispensing either, our pharmacist also asks whether any of the conditions above applies to you.
We do not sell the Risek injection.
Checking your pack is genuine
This DRAP alert concerns the Risek 40 mg injection, not the capsules on this page.
- DRAP says all therapeutic goods must be obtained from licensed pharmacies and authorised outlets, and that the authenticity and condition of products should be carefully checked.
DRAP Rapid Alert No. I/S/03-24-15, 26 March 2024: A falsified Risek 40 mg injection, batch 059PA5, was identified in the market. The Federal Government Analyst declared the sample falsified and spurious, and it also failed the assay test. Getz Pharma confirmed it was not theirs. DRAP told pharmacists and chemists to check their stock immediately.
DRAP press release, 4 April 2024: After the alert was misreported, DRAP clarified that it was meant to warn about counterfeit Risek injections in the market and to advise buying only from authorised sources, and that it is working to remove the falsified products.
We buy only from authorised distributors, and check the batch and expiry on every item before it is packed.
Information as of 14 October 2026. DRAP publishes new alerts on dra.gov.pk.
Returns and replacements
Medicines and supplements can’t be returned once they have left our pharmacy.
- Returned medicine can never go back into saleable stock. That is a safety rule, not a commercial one.
- If an item arrives damaged or wrong, tell us on WhatsApp within 24 hours and we replace it. That is us fixing our mistake, not a return.
- Anything that arrives expired or within a month of expiry we replace or refund, your choice, with no time limit.
Frequently asked questions
Risek kis liye hai?
Risek contains omeprazole, a proton pump inhibitor that reduces stomach acid. UK product information lists short-term relief of reflux symptoms such as heartburn and acid regurgitation in adults for the non-prescription form; on prescription, omeprazole is also used for stomach and duodenal ulcers and reflux oesophagitis. In Pakistan, Getz Pharma’s leaflet says Risek is to be sold on prescription only, so we dispense it on prescription.
Can I take Risek with clopidogrel or Plavix?
Talk to your doctor first. The US Plavix label says to avoid taking clopidogrel with omeprazole or esomeprazole, because both significantly reduce how well clopidogrel works; for omeprazole, the label says this held even when the two were taken 12 hours apart. The UK MHRA advises that the combination should be discouraged unless considered essential. Do not stop either medicine on your own: ask your doctor whether a different acid medicine suits you better.
Risek kitne din tak lena chahiye?
Your doctor sets the course; it depends on the condition. In Pakistan Risek is sold on prescription. Where 20 mg omeprazole is sold without one, the guidance is a short course: the NHS says not to take omeprazole for longer than 2 weeks if you bought it without a prescription. The US over-the-counter label says not to use it for more than 14 days unless a doctor directs, and not to repeat a 14-day course more often than every 4 months. Longer courses are set by a doctor, depending on the condition.
What are the risks of taking Risek for a long time?
Long-term use, mostly a year or more, is linked to low magnesium (US FDA, UK MHRA), a modest increase in the risk of hip, wrist and spine fracture (UK product information, US label) and reduced vitamin B12 absorption (UK product information). The US FDA also links these medicines with diarrhoea from Clostridioides difficile, but says its data on dose and duration are limited. Do not stop a prescription acid medicine without talking to your healthcare professional.
Risek 20mg aur 40mg mein kya farq hai?
Both contain omeprazole. Getz Pharma’s Pakistani leaflet says both strengths are to be sold on prescription only, so we dispense both on prescription. In the US and the UK, 20 mg omeprazole is also sold without a prescription.
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Questions about Risek Capsules 20mg and 40mg?
Send your question on WhatsApp and a pharmacist will come back to you.
DRAP registration
- Risek Capsules 20mg (019364), Getz Pharma (Pvt.) Ltd. DRAP’s registry shows: Provisionally Active, “Approved / Verified”.
- Risek Capsules 40mg (022109), Getz Pharma (Pvt.) Ltd. DRAP’s registry shows: Provisionally Active, “Approved / Verified”.
- Risek Insta Sachet 20mg + 1680mg (058547), Getz Pharma (Pvt) Limited. DRAP’s registry shows: Reviewed, “Not Verified”.
- Risek Insta Sachet 40mg + 1680mg (058548), Getz Pharma (Pvt) Limited. DRAP’s registry shows: Reviewed, “Not Verified”.
- Risek IV Injection/Infusion 40mg (024170), Getz Pharma (Pvt) Limited. DRAP’s registry shows: Provisionally Active, “Not Verified”.
DRAP publishes no definition of this verification flag, so we can’t tell you what it means. We searched DRAP’s website for “Risek” and “omeprazole” on 16 October 2026 and found one alert naming Risek, about a falsified Risek 40 mg injection, and DRAP’s press release on it (both under “Checking your pack is genuine”); the other omeprazole results are alerts that do not name Risek. When we tested it, the search did not find a word that appears only inside an alert’s attached PDF, so an alert that names a product only in its PDF may not show up. DRAP describes its registered products index as a provisional list that “cannot be used as a reference for any purpose”. Checked against the registry between and .
Sources
- US label: Zegerid (omeprazole and sodium bicarbonate) for oral suspension and capsules (DailyMed; label revision 19 July 2023)
- DRAP registered products: Risek Insta Sachet 20mg + 1680mg, registration 058547
- DRAP registered products: Risek Insta Sachet 40mg + 1680mg, registration 058548
- US FDA Drug Safety Communication: low magnesium and long-term PPI use (2 March 2011, archived copy)
- US FDA Drug Safety Communication: Clostridium difficile-associated diarrhoea and PPIs (8 February 2012, archived copy)
- UK MHRA Drug Safety Update: clopidogrel and proton pump inhibitors (April 2010)
- UK MHRA Drug Safety Update: PPIs in long-term use, hypomagnesaemia (April 2012)
- UK SmPC: Omeprazole 20 mg gastro-resistant capsules, prescription (medicines.org.uk)
- UK SmPC: Pyrocalm Control 20mg, non-prescription omeprazole (medicines.org.uk)
- NHS: Omeprazole
- US label: Plavix (clopidogrel) prescribing information (DailyMed)
- US label: Prilosec (omeprazole) prescribing information (DailyMed)
- US label: omeprazole delayed-release capsules prescribing information (DailyMed)
- US Drug Facts label: Prilosec OTC 20 mg (DailyMed)
- Getz Pharma: Risek capsules leaflet, Pakistan (undated, code L-200007969, PDF)
- Getz Pharma: Risek Insta sachets leaflet, Pakistan (code PAK-200022976, PDF)
- DRAP Rapid Alert No. I/S/03-24-15: falsified Risek 40mg injection (26 March 2024, PDF)
- DRAP press release: public alert reporting, on alert I/S/03-24-15 (4 April 2024)