Advertising pharmceuticals

[Aunt Bea]

I'm against drug companies advertising and other forms of medical advertising!

Doctors were lousy business men and they sold the medical profession to corporate America so they could concentrate on practicing medicine, the health care industry was born, a big mistake!

Now it is all about money, market share, treating symptoms and not solving problems or curing diseases. We are sliding back into the days of the medicine show quacks!

It ain't right I tell ya, it just ain't right!

I'm all done ranting, for now!

 

[AnthonyJ]

The United States and New Zealand are the only two countries in the world that allow advertising of pharmaceuticals (DTC= Direct to Consumer) on TV or in magazines.I personally think that the rest of the world is more 'advanced' in that way, in that area.

I apologize in advance for not reading the entire thread, but I couldn't go any further without mentioning the elephant in the room.

Every… Single… Commercial has the SAME warning: Side effects may include […] suicidal thoughts or actions.

My little brother was on an anti-depressant and on the 14th he ended his life. I'm not trying to make a direct correlation, but, there's really only one way to know this is a side effect: Someone in the test group experienced it.

The other good example is the RA meds that can cause lymphoma. My sons mother had Hodgkin's lymphoma, twice. I've had neither, but I would rather have RA than lymphoma.

But the best of the best is the fibromyalgia med: "It is not known how exactly Cymbalta works." That's good… Here, take this, it will work, but we don't know how it works."

 

[GotGarlic]

I'm sorry for your loss, Anthony.

Every symptom someone experiences while they're in a drug trial has to be reported and included in the patient information packet.

Regarding RA, I also have a severe auto-immune disease. I would not be alive now if it weren't for drugs that started out being approved for RA. I've been on several because people often develop antibodies and they stop working. I'll take my chances with the side effects.

 

[Dawgluver]

So sorry, Anthony, my deepest sympathies.

 

[taxlady]

Sorry for your loss Anthony. It just seems wrong that suicidal thoughts are a side effect of several anti-depressants.

 

[taxlady]

"Talk to your doctor about Zantac (or Zoloft)." Why? The ad didn't even tell me what these drugs do.

 

[Addie]

Sorry for your loss Anthony. It just seems wrong that suicidal thoughts are a side effect of several anti-depressants.

For many years suicide has been known to be a major side effect for teenagers who take these drugs. When prescribed for teenagers, it should be noted to the parents and family of this nasty little secret. They need to be made aware so that everyone can keep their eyes open. I am not sure if it is one of those drugs that you can't get a refill on without going back to the doctor's office. If it isn't, it should be.

When my daughter was murdered, my granddaughter was having a hard time dealing with it. I was no help as I was dealing with my own grief. I called a mental health center to make an appointment for her. They asked her name. And that is all. After I hung up I got a phone call a couple of minutes later to inform me that there was a prescription for one of these antidepressants for her. The doctor that phoned it in had never seen her, didn't know her weight, age or any other information about her. I didn't bother to get the prescription or have her keep the appointment.

 

[Dawgluver]

Antidepressants have helped many, and right now, it's the best we can do with what we've got. Are they perfect? Absolutely not. But if they're needed, they should be used. Having worked with adolescents for over 30 years, I find that most depressed kids have had their lives turned around for the better with the antidepressants, including the suicidal kids.

 

[Addie]

Antidepressants have helped many, and right now, it's the best we can do with what we've got. Are they perfect? Absolutely not. But if they're needed, they should be used. Having worked with adolescents for over 30 years, I find that most depressed kids have had their lives turned around for the better with the antidepressants, including the suicidal kids.

I am not against them when needed. I just think there needs to be closer follow up for when they are prescribed for teenagers. We know the dangers, yet we choose to hope that a pill will solve all the problems. The easy way for a solution? Hardly.

 

[cave76]

I'm sorry for your loss, Anthony.

Every symptom someone experiences while they're in a drug trial has to be reported and included in the patient information packet.

Yes it is. But who reads it, besides perhaps me and a few others? Even when my eyesight was better I had to use a magnifying glass to read it.

To further complicate things----- if people did read all the things that could go wrong, they'd never take that drug.

Although I'm a big supporter for people reading the patient packet it's also a CYA kinda thing to discourage lawsuits.

 

[cave76]

@AnthonyJ

I'm sorry for the loss of your brother---- I'm sure you and your family have felt that loss tremendously.

 

[AnthonyJ]

I'm sorry for your loss, Anthony.

Every symptom someone experiences while they're in a drug trial has to be reported and included in the patient information packet.

Regarding RA, I also have a severe auto-immune disease. I would not be alive now if it weren't for drugs that started out being approved for RA. I've been on several because people often develop antibodies and they stop working. I'll take my chances with the side effects.

Don't get me wrong. I'm happy that we've developed the medicines we have to treat the wide variety of ailments people suffer. It's true testament to what we can do when we work towards good.

Just as with our renewable energy sources, I hold firm that we can make them better through proper R&D. Medicine and energy and everything that we do we can only improve on. Where we are is a good start, but we still have work to do we need to continue studying these things and figuring out what causes the side effects we aren't happy with and work on changing that. Things will only get better with time.

Antidepressants have helped many, and right now, it's the best we can do with what we've got. Are they perfect? Absolutely not. But if they're needed, they should be used. Having worked with adolescents for over 30 years, I find that most depressed kids have had their lives turned around for the better with the antidepressants, including the suicidal kids.

I agree completely. My brother was on meds for 8 years or so and was very proud of how they, along with therapy, helped him turn his life around. I wanted to take him out for a drink on his 21st birthday and he turned it down because it would have had complications with his medicine. He said "I'd rather not skip taking my meds. I like being a productive person and I don't want to risk that."

Like I said whatever he was going through was big, so I don't blame the meds entirely. There was something deeper than that that he needed to get away from. I just try to take solace in knowing that he's no longer dealing with whatever burden pushed him to this limit.

And I thank all of you from the bottom of my heart for your condolences. The best thing right now is the outpouring of his friends on his Facebook page remembering all the fun times they had with him and how much of a caring person he was that he was always helping out people in the neighborhood.

 

[bakechef]

Antidepressants have helped many, and right now, it's the best we can do with what we've got. Are they perfect? Absolutely not. But if they're needed, they should be used. Having worked with adolescents for over 30 years, I find that most depressed kids have had their lives turned around for the better with the antidepressants, including the suicidal kids.

Years ago my dad was hurt on the job and was fired illegally (company didn't even try to meet OSHA standards).

This threw him into a deep depression, we didn't know what was going on. Finally my mom sent him to the doctor and he was prescribed antidepressants. With close monitoring and therapy he got so much better. I think that is the secret, having a doctor closely monitoring and a mental heath professional keeping things on track.

It seems that antidepressants are handed out these days without psychotherapy, that seems a bit dangerous.

I have anxiety issues, and I've been hesitant to talk to my doctor about it, I don't want antidepressants. There are sure times that I could use a Valium though!

 

[GotGarlic]

Yes it is. But who reads it, besides perhaps me and a few others? Even when my eyesight was better I had to use a magnifying glass to read it.

To further complicate things----- if people did read all the things that could go wrong, they'd never take that drug.

Although I'm a big supporter for people reading the patient packet it's also a CYA kinda thing to discourage lawsuits.

I'm sorry, I wasn't clear. Every symptom has to be reported whether there is any evidence it's related to taking the drug or not. Most of the time, they're not. Correlation does not equal causation.

Regarding antidepressants, obviously the people taking them are depressed and the people who join a clinical trial have tried other options already. And it takes some time for most antidepressants to build up to a therapeutic dose in the body, so it shouldn't be surprising that people continue to suffer symptoms of depression, including suicidal thoughts, while they're taking the drug. That doesn't mean the drug caused the suicidal thoughts - just that they happened at the same time. Correlation does not equal causation.

 

[cave76]

"FDA approves Duavee to treat hot flashes and prevent osteoporosis"
FDA approves Duavee to treat hot flashes and prevent osteoporosis

"Estrogen and drugs like bazedoxifene can increase the risk of blood clots."

"Pfizer said that Duavee should not be used by women who: have or have had blood clots "

[my note---- of those who don't want blood clots, in some cases.]

"Duavee should be used with caution, and only for the shortest time possible," said Dr. Jennifer Wu, an ob/gyn with Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City. "No hormone replacement is intended for the long term."

"Uterine cancer may still be a risk when using the estrogen," Wu added. "Longer term studies are needed."

[my note: Or just let the guinea pigs out there 'study' it some more.]

http://www.webmd.com/menopause/news/20131004/fda-oks-drug-to-treat-hot-flashes-in-menopausal-women"

"Common side effects of Duavee include muscle spasms, nausea, diarrhea, upset stomach, abdominal pain, throat pain, dizziness and neck pain, according to Pfizer."
FDA OKs Drug to Treat Hot Flashes in Menopausal Women

There ARE women who have severe hot flashes. However 'severe' is a very subjective word.. Mine were pretty bad (severe? to some?) but I didn't have to make any life-style changes (except to turn the heater down, to the great joy of my husband!)

And I guess that a very few women might get hot flashes that are medically dangerous but I haven't found them. Menopause can have some dangerous problems associated with it but the ones listed don't include hot flashes.

So why the drug for them? Ka-ching!?

 

[tinlizzie]

In last Sunday's newspaper, one of the full-page ads was about "The Youth Hormone." At the top of the page, it said "Advertorial," a new word to me.

 

[Cooking Goddess]

...My little brother was on an anti-depressant and on the 14th he ended his life...

Anthony, my heart aches for your loss. Our daughter experienced the death of a friend through suicide when she was in high school and it shook her to her core. Your brother's pain ended for him when he died, but you and all his loved ones will continue to hurt for the rest of your lives. Good thoughts and prayers for all of you.

 

[GotGarlic]

One important thing I learned from working at a medical school, and from working with a GI doctor who is on the faculty there, is that medical understanding of disease processes is becoming more and more refined, which means that they understand better why different drugs affect different people differently, and so new drugs are developed to address those differences.

The other important thing I always remember is that I'm not a doctor or a microbiologist.

It's a cliché that there is always more than one side to a story. In medicine, there are many factors that doctors must take into account when deciding on which medication to prescribe, how much to start, how much and how fast to increase (if necessary) and how long a person should take it. A cost-benefit analysis (risk of side effects against the likelihood of effectiveness and safety) is part of that.

Here's an example:

"We used to have this monolithic view that you treat all patients who have Crohn's or ulcerative colitis the same way. With the advent of individual or personalized medicine, we're beginning to appreciate that there is considerable individual variation in response to a particular medication.

"For example, even with the anti-tumor necrosis factor agents, arguably the most effective class of medications for IBD, only 70 to 80 percent of people, at most, respond initially, and many of those patients lose their response over time. So we need multiple drugs with multiple mechanisms of action."

From http://www.mayoclinic.org/medical-p...ing-pipeline-inflammatory-bowel-disease-drugs

 

[DaveSoMD]

Drug advertising should stop, now.

I totally agree!

 

[PrincessFiona60]

And also different patients are willing to take those risks to fight their disease.