Category Archives: Drug Side Effects

Apr. 17, 2013 A new review finds little difference between effectiveness of drugs routinely prescribed for migraine prevention but evident difference in the side-effects experienced. Migraine headaches are a major cause of ill health and a reduced quality of life. Some individuals suffer from a frequent and severe migraine problem which means that they require regular medication to try and prevent them. A new review of the medications, which may help to prevent episodic migraines, appears in the Journal of General Internal Medicine, published by Springer. The authors, Tatyana Shamliyan from the University of Minnesota School of Public Health, and her colleagues, compare published research on the drugs available to find those which offer the best migraine prevention coupled with the fewest adverse side-effects. Preventive treatments for migraines aim to reduce the number of migraines suffered by fifty percent. There are a number of different drugs commonly used, all of which may cause some side effects. The researchers carried out a review of studies which tested how well the different types of drugs worked and also their acceptability in terms of adverse effects suffered. The studies used enrolled mostly middle aged women with episodic migraine who suffered an average of … Continue reading →

Toronto, Canada (PRWEB) April 16, 2013 RxISK.org, the first free, independent website for researching and reporting prescription drug side effects, has added a Symptoms on Stopping (SoS) Zone to highlight and collect data on the side effects patients can experience when stopping a medication. "While many of us associate withdrawal with stopping things like cigarettes, heroin, or sleeping pills, we may not realize that commonly used prescription drugs for conditions such as high blood pressure, cholesterol, indigestion, and depression have withdrawal effects that can range from mild rebound symptoms to life-threatening crises", says RxISK Chief Medical Officer Dr. Dee Mangin. Users can report their experience and receive a personalized RxISK Report that assesses whether their symptoms are linked to stopping their medication, which they can take to their doctor or pharmacist. Dr. Dee Mangin says, For example, when stopping a proton-pump inhibitor like Losec for indigestion, there is a rebound of acid production in the stomach that can cause indigestion far worse than the original symptoms. This is just a rebound effect and will settle; however, it can be mistaken to mean that the patient still needs the drug. Similarly, stopping diuretics abruptly can cause rebound edema. And stopping some … Continue reading →

Less than a year after the Food and Drug Administration began accepting applications for breakthrough therapy designations to fast-track promising new drugs, regulators have approved just 11 of 35 requests from pharmaceutical companies. Three of those approvals, however, have gone to one niche market cancer drug that Raritan-based Janssen Pharmaceuticals is developing with Pharmacyclics Inc. of Sunnyvale, Calif. The drug, called Ibrutinib, has so far proved effective at blocking three different types of blood cancers in patients who had relapsed several times after taking existing therapies. The FDA designations are for chronic lymphocytic leukemia, mantle cell lymphoma and Waldenstroms macroglobulinemia. Industry analysts say Ibrutinib has mostly flown under the radar because of its small market, but still believe it holds significant potential for its unique technology and relatively mild side effects. Last week, the FDA granted Ibrutinib its latest breakthrough designation to treat CLL, one of the most common forms of adult leukemia that affects about 16,000 Americans a year. The disease, a slow-growing cancer that starts in the white blood cells, targets the elderly, with an average survival of about five years. Clinical trials have shown Ibrutinib is effective for all CLL patients but works particularly well in those … Continue reading →

The DrugRisk Resource Center is the Webs largest source for information on prescription drug warnings, side effects and legal news. Visit http://www.DrugRisk.com New York, NY (PRWEB) April 11, 2013 The goal of DrugRisk is to improve the safety of patients taking popular prescription drugs by providing the most up-to-date warnings, recalls, studies and legal news. Visitors can determine if others have experienced similar side effects and decide if they need legal advice. DrugRisk contains warnings from experts such as the FDA and European Medicines Agency*, who have warned that long-term use of Actos may be associated with an increased bladder cancer risk. The drug has also been banned in France and Germany**. Although Actos remains on the market in the United States, the resource center notes that as many as 3,000 patients have filed an Actos lawsuit against drug maker Takeda Pharmaceuticals alleging they developed bladder cancer***. Now, DrugRisk has added updated legal news from the first Actos lawsuit to begin trial last month in California. In the case of Jack Cooper, a retired man alleging his terminal bladder cancer was caused by Actos, Dr. Norm D. Smith, an assistant professor of urology and surgery at the University of Chicago, … Continue reading →

WEDNESDAY, April 10 (HealthDay News) -- Drug company salespeople provide family doctors with little or no information about the harmful effects of medicines they are promoting, a new study says. Despite this lack of knowledge, doctors are likely to start prescribing these drugs after visits from company representatives, according to the findings from questionnaires completed by American, Canadian and French doctors. The study revealed that salespeople failed to provide any information about common or serious side effects or warn doctors about types of patients who should not use the medicine in 59 percent of the promotions. "Laws in all three countries require sales representatives to provide information on harm as well as benefits," lead author Barbara Mintzes, of the University of British Columbia, said in a university news release. "But no one is monitoring these visits and there are next to no sanctions for misleading or inaccurate promotion." Serious risks were mentioned in only 6 percent of the promotions, even though 57 percent of the medicines involved in these visits came with U.S. Food and Drug Administration "black box" or Health Canada boxed warnings, which are the strongest types of drug warnings in the two countries. "We are very concerned … Continue reading →

Week 3 social media 5pm class By: Allison Gleason Besch … Continue reading →

The majority of family doctors receive little or no information from drug company representatives about potentially harmful effects of medications, according to an international study of U.S, Canadian, and French physicians. The findings are published online in the Journal of General Internal Medicine. A release from the lead investigating institution, the University of British Columbia, reports that the participating doctors indicated that they were likely to start prescribing these drugs. This is consistent with previous research that shows prescribing behavior is influenced by pharmaceutical promotion. The study, which had doctors fill out questionnaires about each promoted medicine following sales visits showed that a whopping 59% of sales representatives failed to provide any information about common or serious side effects and the type of patients who should not use the medicine. Worse yet, in Vancouver and Montreal, no potential harms were mentioned for 66% of promoted medicines. The release quotes lead author Barbara Mintzes as saying, "Laws in all three countries require sales representatives to provide information on harm as well as benefits. But no one is monitoring these visits and there are next to no sanctions for misleading or inaccurate promotion." Serious risks were mentioned in only 6% of the … Continue reading →

TORONTO - Most family doctors say they receive little or no information about harmful effects of medications when visited by drug company sales representatives promoting their products, a survey of Canadian, U.S. and French physicians has found. The study, which involved 255 doctors in Montreal, Vancouver, Sacramento and Toulouse, France, shows that sales reps failed to provide any information about common or serious side-effects and the type of patients who should not use the medicine in 59 per cent of promotions. In Vancouver and Montreal, no potential harms were mentioned for 66 per cent of promoted medicines, says the study published online Wednesday in the Journal of General Internal Medicine. "Laws in all three countries require sales representatives to provide information on harm as well as benefits," said principal researcher Barbara Mintzes of the University of British Columbia. "But no one is monitoring these visits and there are next to no sanctions for misleading or inaccurate promotion." Serious risks were mentioned in only six per cent of the promotions, even though 57 per cent of the medications involved in these visits came with U.S. Food and Drug Administration "black box" or Health Canada boxed warnings the strongest warnings issued in … Continue reading →

Smoking in youth-rated movies doubles Smoking in youth-rated movies doubles Smoking scenes in youth-rated movies doubled in number between 2010 and 2012, and have returned to the same level as a decade ago, according to a new report. Smoking scenes in youth-rated movies doubled in number between 2010 and 2012, and have returned to the same level as a decade ago, according to a new report. Drug company salespeople provide family doctors with little or no information about the harmful effects of medicines they are promoting, a new study says. Drug company salespeople provide family doctors with little or no information about the harmful effects of medicines they are promoting, a new study says. A centuries-old bedbug remedy has scientists full of beans -- kidney beans to be precise. A centuries-old bedbug remedy has scientists full of beans -- kidney beans to be precise. Internet searches for information about mental illnesses follow seasonal patterns, which suggests that there may be a stronger association between mental disorders and changing seasons than previously believed. Internet searches for information about mental illnesses follow seasonal patterns, which suggests that there may be a stronger association between mental disorders and changing seasons than previously believed. … Continue reading →

Most family doctors say they receive little or no information about harmful effects of medications when visited by drug company sales representatives promoting their products, a survey of Canadian, U.S. and French physicians has found. The study, which involved 255 doctors in Montreal, Vancouver, Sacramento and Toulouse, France, shows that sales reps failed to provide any information about common or serious side effects and the type of patients who should not use the medicine in 59 per cent of promotions. In Vancouver and Montreal, no potential harms were mentioned for 66 per cent of promoted medicines, says the study published online Wednesday in the Journal of General Internal Medicine. Laws in all three countries require sales representatives to provide information on harm as well as benefits, said principal researcher Barbara Mintzes of the University of British Columbia. But no one is monitoring these visits and there are next to no sanctions for misleading or inaccurate promotion. Serious risks were mentioned in only 6 per cent of the promotions, even though 57 per cent of the medications involved in these visits came with U.S. Food and Drug Administration black box or Health Canada boxed warnings the strongest warnings issued in both … Continue reading →