Drugs/Medical Archive

Reglan: 8 Things you Should Know

May 29th, 2009. By admin

1. Approved for 12-week use. Reglan is only approved to be taken for up to 12 weeks, though it’s often prescribed for longer time periods.

2. Generic name is Metoclopramide. Check your prescription label as you may in fact be taking a generic version of Reglan, but not be aware that you are.

3. Prescribed for more than Acid Reflux (GERD). Reglan is a gastrointestinal stimulant, but it’s also an anti-nauseant. It’s prescribed for Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease, Diabetic Gastroparesis (Diabetic Gastric Stasis), and Renal or Hepatic Impairment.

4. Linked to Tardive Dyskinesia. Reglan has been linked to Tardive Dyskinesia, which involves abnormal and involuntary repetitive movement. Tardive dyskinesia is often permanent, and there is no known effective treatment.

Tags: Reglan, Reglan Side Effects, Tardive Dyskinesia
Posted in Drugs/Medical | 17 Comments »

Clock Ticking for Psoriasis Drug Raptiva: On it? Get off!

May 29th, 2009. By admin

On Raptiva? Then the clock’s ticking. Your pharmacy will only give you a refill on your prescription till until Monday, June 8^th. While we’re happy that Genentech decided to voluntarily withdraw Raptiva from the market given the drug’s link to the deadly progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (PML) infection, there’s one thing Genentech couldn’t take away: patients’ stress.

Think about it-you’re on Raptiva for psoriasis and you’ve been told that stopping Raptiva at once could either worsen your psoriasis or, worse yet, necessitate hospitalization. That’ll give you pause if you’re considering going cold turkey. But then again, you did receive that letter in the mail from Genentech advising you that you’ll need to stop taking it. Feeling caught between a rock and a hard place? You should be.

But before you stress yourself out even more, see your doctor first. You and your doctor need to come up with a plan to switch to another psoriasis treatment before coming off Raptiva. Beyond that (as if that isn’t enough), if you any questions about what recourse you may have as a result of being on Raptiva and being told you need to come off it pronto, you may want to ask a lawyer about your situation.

Tags: Psoriasis drug, Raptiva, Raptiva PML Brain Infection
Posted in Drugs/Medical | No Comments »

Antidepressant Suicide Reports Continue to Mount

May 28th, 2009. By Evelyn Pringle

This week, journalist Philip Dawdy reported on the popular website Furious Seasons that Wyeth’s Effexor me-too drug Pristiq, FDA approved in early 2008, had already generated 1,272 adverse event reports in the FDA’s MedWatch system through the end of 2008, and wrote with live links to the reports:

“It’s discouraging that 17 of those reports involve completed suicides through the end of 2008. There are also 48 reports of suicidal ideation through the end of 2008.”

“That’s a lot in such a short period of time, especially considering that this drug isn’t exactly widely used,” Dawdy points out. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: Effexor, paxil, Pristiq, Prozac, SSRIs, Zoloft
Posted in Defective Products, Drugs/Medical | 6 Comments »

Flu Vaccinated Kids More Likely to Be Hospitalized

May 26th, 2009. By Evelyn Pringle

On May 19, 2009, researchers presented a study that found children who received the trivalent inactivated influenza vaccine [TIV] had a three times greater risk of hospitalization for the flu than kids who were not vaccinated at the International Conference of the American Thoracic Society in San Diego.

To determine whether the vaccine was effective in reducing the number of hospitalizations over consecutive flu seasons for 8 years, the researchers conducted a study of 263 children between the ages of 6 months and 18, evaluated at the Mayo Clinic between 1996 and 2006, with laboratory-confirmed influenza and reviewed records to determine which kids had received a flu shot before the illness and hospitalization. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: autism, flu, Offit, thimerosal, vaccine
Posted in Defective Products, Drugs/Medical, Emerging Issues, Personal Injury | 10 Comments »

Add Stress to Raptiva Side Effects

May 23rd, 2009. By janem

When it comes to a drug like Raptiva, the risks most certainly outweigh the benefits. On its extensive list of side effects—including a brain damage disease called progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (PML) that is lethal—the drug company should add STRESS. I’ve talked with several people and one nurse in particular, who took this psoriasis drug for a few years before noticing any side effects. None of the psoriasis sufferers I spoke with have been diagnosed with PML, but not a day goes by that they aren’t fearful. And because the disease is rare, not much is known about it. Gloria, the nurse I spoke with, said that much of the medical community hasn’t put 2 and 2 together. In Gloria’s case she was hospitalized for neurological problems. ” The doctors couldn’t say that Raptiva was the direct cause, but they didn’t rule it out either,” she said.

Tags: PML, Psoriasis, Raptiva
Posted in Drugs/Medical | No Comments »