FDA sends contradictory message re: addictive drugs prescribed for children – NIMH admits cognitive therapy as good as SSRIs Fri, 27 May 2005 Two government health care agencies sent conflicting mixed messages about th euse of psychotropic drugs for children: The National Instiute of Mental Health issued an announcement acknowledging…
Marketing Diseas – NYT /APA invites Soprano-Actress Psychiatrist– Pfizer Spokeswoman to speak at conference Fri, 13 May 2005 The New York times reported how drug companies invent and market a disease in order to ensure a market for newly developed drugs. Under the influence of the pharmaceutical industry, illness does…
Natrecor found to worsen kidney function, hasten death – NYT Tue, 17 May 2005 Natrecor, a drug approved by the FDA for treating patients with heart failure, is being widely prescribed off label for unapproved uses. The drug is prescribed for so-called “tune-ups” in outpatient clinics – although that use…
Ct. Attorney General Files Petition with FDA Seeking Warning on Drug – NYT Sat, 7 May 2005 Connecticut’s Attorney General, Richard Blumenthal, is to be commended for filing a citizen’s petition that essentially asks the FDA to do its job of protecting the public by issuing warnings about the potentially…
FDA Slaps Pfizer on Zoloft Ads After AHRP Files Complaint Sat, 07 May 2005 On November 4, 2004, AHRP filed a complaint with the FDA about a two page Pfizer advertisement for its SSRI antidepressant, Zoloft. The ad appeared in The New York Times Magazine in October 2004, but Pfizer…
A Lobbying Campaign for Screening Children for Mental Problems–a Gimmick Aimed at Increasing PhRMA Profits Wed, 11 May 2005 The big guns of America’s mental health establishment — including the American Psychiatric and Psychological Associations and the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill — are making united front in support…
Latest Huckstersm: Surgical Implants for Depression – NYT Sat, 21 May 2005 The FDA was supposed to protect the public from snake oil hucksterism. It is appalling to note how far the FDA’s approval process for drugs and devices has veered away from it’s 1962 standards of evidence-based medicine. [1]…
SSRI Defects: Infants Suffer Drug Withdrawal / Adults risk GI bleeding Wed, 18 May 2005 The Associated Press reports that new research confirms that: “Babies born to women taking antidepressants in the last three months of pregnancy were three times more likely to develop drug-related symptoms than those born to…
Drug Companies Move Trials Outside the US Tue, 17 May 2005 Unless the FDA cracks down by enforcing safety and scientific standards in clinical trials, the drug industry is moving its drug trials out of any regulatory oversight. USA Today reports that 50% of trials sponsored by Wyeth Pharmaceuticals were…
Accutane Suicide Controversy–small study finds depression reduced Tue, 17 May 2005 Accutane–a drug prescribed for acne has been linked to suicide and birth defects–it carries bold warnings about birth defects. A small non-blinded study finding is being touted by Hoffman-La Roche, manufacturer of Accutane. The study found the drug did…
Drug Companies are Outsourcing Drug Trials – WP Wed, 4 May 2005 The Washington Post reports that a study by Tufts has found a drop in the number of pharmaceutical company sponsored drug trials. Fewer new drug applications are being submitted to the FDA, and there has been a drop…
Someone Tell Brooke Shields the Truth!! Mon, 4 Jul 2005 On this American independence day, thousands of families strive for drug free schools–and they’re not worrying about illegal drugs, their main concern is coercive prescribed amphetamines and other mind-altering psychotropic drugs. Other than the critical reaction of actor Tom Cruise,…
