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News Archive

Avandia Heart Attack
-LawyersandSettlements.com
05/16/2008- New Orleans, LA: After being on Avandia for two years, Gail suffered a heart attack. When she was admitted to hospital, immediately following her heart attack, the doctors did an angiogram and found that all the arteries were blocked. Gail had to have five stents put in, which required two separate operations. More>>>

Squeaking Hips – Is It Grandpa’s Ceramic Hip?
-InjuryBoard.com
05/16/2008- Artificial hips have a basic design: a socket implanted in the pelvis, into which a spherical head is fitted. A spike is attached to the head which his driven into the femur, or thigh bone for anchorage. More>>>

MRI and MRA Health Risks: Questions Raised
-LawyersandSettlements.com
05/16/2008- Chicago, IL MRIs and MRAs are non-invasive diagnostic procedures that enable physicians to visualize internal body structures and contrast agents are often used to further improve diagnosis. The MRI contrast agent market is now the subject of lawsuits concerning gadolinium chelate-based agents (and reported to have sales of more than $1 billion annually) and the potential release of this heavy metal into the body. More>>>

Bayer Will Begin Pulling Remaining Stock of Trasylol
-Bloomberg.com
05/16/2008- Bayer AG will begin removing the remaining stock of the drug Trasylol, used to control bleeding, from warehouses and hospitals, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration said in a statement today. More>>>

Study Confirms Trasylol Dangers
-InjuryBoard.com
05/16/2008- The results of a study published in the New England Journal of Medicine have confirmed preliminary findings that Bayer’s anti-bleeding medication Trasylol (aprotinin) dramatically increases a patient’s risk of death. More>>>

Trasylol Gone for Good
-NewsInferno.com
05/16/2008- Trasylol is being removed from the market for good. Bayer AG had suspended marketing of Trasylol, a drug used to prevent bleeding during heart surgery, in November, after a clinical trial found patients treated with Trasylol were dying at higher rates than others. More>>>

Bayer anti-bleeding drug linked to 50 per cent higher death rate than alternatives
-Orillia Packet & Times
05/16/2008- An expensive drug used to minimize severe bleeding during heart surgery actually significantly increased the risk that patients would die during surgery or in the 30 days following, a Canadian study comparing the drug to two far cheaper alternatives shows. More>>>

Is this the end of the Trasylol story?
-FiercePharma
05/15/2008 - A new study could be the last nail in Trasylol's coffin. In a head-to-head comparison of Trasylol (aprotinin) and two other anti-bleeding meds, patients getting Trasylol during heart surgery were much more likely to die than patients on the other meds. More>>>

Study likely spells end for anti-bleeding drug

-Washington Post
05/15/2008 - An anti-bleeding drug probably will stay off the market, experts say, after a rigorous study found patients getting the medication during heart surgery were much more likely to die than patients given other drugs. More>>>

Patients given popular heart surgery drug had higher risk of dying: study

-The Ottawa Citizen
05/15/2008 - Patients who received a drug commonly used to control bleeding during heart surgery were at a higher risk of dying, new research by the Ottawa Health Research Institute reveals. More>>>

Is Ortho-Evra Birth Control Patch Dangerous?
-CBS News

05/15/2008- If you use the birth control patch Ortho-Evra, you could be endangering your health. That's what a law suit against Ortho-Evra's maker, Johnson and Johnson is claiming. More>>>

Can You Hear Me Now? Yes, We Heard Your Hip Squeak.
- InjuryBoard.com
05/14/2008- Another report appears in the New York Times today relaying stories of hip implant patients whose implants are causing embarrassing problems because they squeak. More>>>

Stryker Corp. Trident Hip Replacement Blamed for Epidemic of Squeaky Hips
-NewsInferno.com
05/13/2008- A growing number of hip replacement patients - especially those with Stryker Corp’s Trident components - are experiencing squeaky hips. More>>>

FDA Issues Another Heparin Warning, Faces More Backlash in Congress
-NewsInferno.com
05/13/2008- Some medical facilities still have recalled heparin in their inventories, prompting the Food & Drug Administration (FDA) to issue yet another warning about the defective drug. More>>>

Medtronic Issues Precautionary Recall of Heparin-Coated Products

-FDA News

05/13/2008 - Medtronic is recalling certain heparin-coated disposable products used during cardiopulmonary bypass for heart surgeries. More>>>

Birth Control Patches Pose Health Risk
-eMaxHealth

05/13/2008- A US consumer advocacy group is asking FDA to pull off Johnson & Johnson's birth control patches Ortho-Evra, because they pose health risk. More>>>

Chantix Suicide: Sinking Into the Deep Hole

-Lawyers and Settlements

05/13/2008 - New marketing ads for Pfizer's Chantix will look very different from the original 'tortoise and the hare' ads of last year, now that Pfizer has to include risk for suicide. More>>>

Trasylol Tragedy Timeline: The Dates of Destiny

-Lawyers and Settlements
05/12/2008 - The tragedy that is Trasylol and the scores of people who have died at the hands of the expensive anti-bleeding drug reads like the plot line of a bad movie. Only in this case, the villain doesn't get it in the end. At least, not yet. That payback may eventually be found in the courts of law as hundreds of lawsuits move forward. More>>>

Birth Control Patch – A Threat for Women, FDA Pressed to Remove It
-eNews 2.0

05/12/2008- The Ortho-Evra birth control patch is far riskier than the pill, a consumer advocacy group said. The group petitioned the government to remove the birth control patch from the market, as it represents a threat for women who use it. More>>>

Ennis & Ennis, P.A. Supports Petition To Remove Ortho Evra Birth Control Patch From U.S. Market
-Open Press

05/12/2008- Ennis & Ennis, P.A. is supporting the petition to the FDA, filed by Public Citizen, to remove the Ortho Evra Birth Control Patch from the U.S. market. More>>>

"A Nurse Warned Me Not to Take Chantix"

-Lawyers and Settlements

05/12/2008 - "I went from being an active, social person to someone who thought everyone was against me and I thought they would be better off without me," says Stacey. "By the third week of taking Chantix, I had suicidal thoughts." More>>>

That Must Be Bob. I Hear His New Hip Squeaking.
-TheNewYorkTimes
05/11/2008- The first time John L. Johnson’s artificial hip squeaked, he was bending down to pick up a pine cone in his yard in Thomasville, Ga. Mr. Johnson looked up, expecting to find an animal nearby. More>>>

Thomas McGarity: Safeguard lawsuits that potentially save lives
-dallasnews.com
05/10/2008- A report recently published in the Journal of the American Medical Association should be deeply troubling to the millions of Americans who have taken the blockbuster painkiller Vioxx. The article demonstrated that many of the published scientific studies used to establish the drug’s safety and efficacy had been “ghostwritten” by the manufacturer. More>>>

Ortho Evra Needs to Go, Public Citizen Says
-NEWSInferno.com
05/10/2008- A prominent consumer advocacy group says Ortho Evra, Johnson & Johnson’s controversial birth control patch, is too dangerous to be on the market.  Public Citizen is asking federal regulators to ban Ortho Evra because it poses a higher risk of potentially fatal blood clots than other hormone-based contraceptives. More>>>

Several Drugs Found to be Linked to Suicide
-InjuryBoard.com
05/10/2008- Suicide has been linked to several medicines over the past few years. Some of these include Accutane, Chantix, Singular and Paxil. The Food and Drug Administration has received reports on at least six different drug classes that may be linked to suicidal behavior.  The SSRI antidepressants were some of the first drugs linked to suicidal thoughts several years ago. More>>>

Trasylol: "I've Gone Through Hell"

-Lawyers and Settlements
05/09/2008 - Loretta M. says she is sure she was given Trasylol during her open heart surgeries because her doctor spoke about using blood-regulating drugs during surgery. More>>>

Chantix Helps Smoking Stoppage, May Lead to Suicide

-eNews 2.0

05/09/2008 - The federal government suggests doctors should recommend Chantix to patients who are to quit smoking. Chantix is a drug released by Pfizer Inc. in 2006 and is considered to have the highest efficiency in combating this vice. The issue is that, despite the praise about its proficiency, its side effects are worrisome. More>>>

Ortho Evra: Convenience at a Terrible Cost

-Lawyers and Settlements

05/09/2008- She was just 18 when the Ortho Evra patch claimed her life. A student, studying for a career in fashion. After she collapsed in a Manhattan subway in April 2005 and subsequently died, an autopsy revealed that a blood clot had formed and moved into the young lady's lung. More>>>

Pfizer relaunches ads for smoking cessation drug Chantix

- Star Ledger

05/07/2008 - Pfizer yanked ads for its smoking cessation drug Chantix earlier this year because of safety concerns -- specifically, reports that taking the drug could lead to behavioral changes, depression and even suicidal thoughts in some patients. More>>>

MRI Health Risk: “Doctors Said the Dye caused Kidney Failure”
-LawyersandSettlements.com
05/05/2008- Albuquerque, NM: Eighteen months ago, Norm C. was very healthy and active. But he took a turn for the worse and ended up in hospital where he was injected with a gadolinium based contrast agent (like a dye) and had an MRI to determine what was wrong. Turns out, the dye just about killed him. More>>>

Osteoporosis Drug Can Flutter the Heart
-Heartzine.com
05/05/2008- The osteoporosis drug Fosamax that is prescribed to women might increase their risk of developing an irregular heart beat, a study by researchers at the Group Health Centre for Health Studies and University of Washington suggests. Despite the findings, the researchers conclude that the benefits of the drug far outweigh the risks faced by women. More>>>

LegalView Reports on Details of FDA Warning to Avandia Manufacturer for Withholding
-TransWorldNews
05/05/2008- Denver, CO LegalView.com, the number one resource for everything legal on the Internet, published news of the most recent Avandia update specifying the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)'s warnings to GlaxoSmithKline, makers of the type 2 diabetes drug Avandia. The warning resulted from the manufacturer's noncompliance with reporting post-marketing research information on the drug. The company did not issue the full breadth of research for 10 ongoing clinical trials that spanned from 2001 to 2007. More>>>

NuvaRing Suspected in Mother's Death
-LawyersandSettlements.com

05/05/2008- Denville, NJ: She was young, healthy and fit; a runner and a vibrant mother of two. So it was a complete shock when, one morning in February of 2006, 31-year-old Rosana Mariconda collapsed onto her bed while getting ready for work. She died of a stroke, and her husband Frank suspects the NuvaRing birth control device she was using. More>>>

Avandia One Year Later
-Lawyers and Settlements
05/04/2008- A new report suggests that doctors are continuing to be increasingly concerned with regard to the safety and efficacy of Avandia, with that concern increasing nine-fold since the once-popular GlaxoSmithKline diabetes drug blasted into the headlines last spring. More>>>

Accutane News – Case 1, 2 and 3 - $7m, $2.6m and now $10.5m
-Lawyers and Settlements
05/04/2008- Accutane is as drug for treating severe acne. There are important and significant side-effects disclosed on the written warning. One side effect caused by ingesting Accutane is ulcerative colitis. A New Jersey state court jury awarded a 24 year old woman $10.5 million for compensatory damages. They Court did not allow the jury to consider punitive damages or consumer fraud issues. More>>>

Fosamax “Dead Jaw Syndrome” Tied to Microbial Biofilms
-NewsInferno
05/04/2008- Microbial biofilms are behind a nasty side effect of osteoporosis drugs like Fosamax, new research says. These biofilms, a mix of bacteria and sticky extracellular material, are causing jaw tissue infections in patients taking bisphosphonate drugs like Fosamax, Actonel and Boniva, according to a study conducted at the USC School of Dentistry. Earlier this year, another group of researchers linked biofilms to eye infections that were caused by recalled Renu with MoistureLoc Contact Lens solution in 2006. More>>>

Trasylol Death Unnecessary
-Lawyers and Settlements
05/04/2008- Although Trasylol has been recalled, many people are only now realizing that they or their loved ones may have been given the drug during open heart surgery and may have suffered serious adverse reactions to the drug, including kidney failure. More>>>

Eli Lilly STALLING on ZYPREXA Payout
-World Forum

05/02/2008 - Lilly's credibility over their continuous PR on how they are going to pay out $1.2 billion in Zyprexa damages Many claimants are being stonewalled. More>>>

Stryker’s Quality Control Effort to Cost Millions
-FDA News
05/02/2008 -  As Stryker’s hip implant franchise took a $15 million to $20 million hit last quarter due to a recall and temporary production stoppage of its implantable hip cups, the company is spending millions of dollars instituting a corporatewide quality control program meant to resolve two FDA warning letters. More>>>

Chantix Caused Veteran’s Depression

- Lawyers and Settlements

05/01/2008 - When John came back from Kuwait a few months ago, his VA doctor said that Chantix was the 'Number 1' drug to quit smoking. He neglected to tell John of the side effects, such as depression and suicidal thoughts. More>>>

Springfield Woman Suing Makers of NuvaRing
ABC News
04/30/2008- Though doctors aren't sure if the NuvaRing is entirely to blame, 27-year-old Misty Liebert is convinced it is. As a new mom, Misty says she needed a birth control that wouldn't make her nauseous. But her three weeks on the NuvaRing left her with a lifetime of worries. More>>>

Fosamax Users At Increased Risk for Irregular Heart Rhythm
InjuryBoard.com
04/30/2008- A study has found that women who use the drug Fosamax are twice as likely to develop an irregular heartbeat condition known as atrial fibrillation as women who have never taken the drug. The 86% increased risk of atrial fibrillation was an unexpected finding.  More>>>

1st suspected victim of Ortho Evra reported in Taiwan

-The China Post

04/30/2008 - The controversial Ortho Evra birth control patch, marketed in Taiwan as the Evra Transdermal Patch, may have claimed its first victim on the island. More>>>

Heparin Contamination May Have Been Deliberate, F.D.A. Says

-NY Times

04/30/2008 - Federal drug regulators believe that a contaminant detected in a crucial blood thinner that has caused 81 deaths was added deliberately, something the Food and Drug Administration has only hinted at previously. More>>>

Congressman: ‘Citizens Can No Longer Trust’ FDA

-Wall Street Journal

04/30/2008 - The FDA got another tongue lashing from Rep. John Dingell yesterday, who seems frustrated that the agency isn’t clamoring for more money to inspect foreign manufacturing plants. More>>>

Researchers Uncover Link Between Osteoporosis Drugs and Jaw Infection

-Health News Digest
04/30/2008 - A group of University of Southern California School of Dentistry researchers says it has identified the slimy culprits killing the jawbones of some people taking drugs that treat osteoporosis. More>>>

Baxter CEO: Heparin contamination was deliberate

-Reuters

04/29/2008 -  The contamination of Baxter International Inc's blood-thinner heparin appears to have been deliberate, the company's chief executive said in testimony prepared for a congressional hearing on Tuesday. More>>>

Families, CEOs to testify on tainted heparin in US

-Reuters

04/29/2008 -  People who lost relatives to deadly reactions from the blood-thinner heparin are set to testify on Tuesday before U.S. lawmakers probing contamination of the drug made with raw ingredients imported from China. More>>>

Trasylol May Have Caused Advanced Kidney Failure
-Lawyers and Settlements
04/29/2008 - Mark L. suffered kidney failure shortly after his open heart surgery. However, he does not know for sure if Trasylol was used. Mark is now trying to determine whether or not doctors gave him Trasylol to stop him from bleeding during surgery. More>>>

The Frightening Heparin Case
-NY Times

04/28/2008 - The story of a deadly, contaminated blood thinner has laid bare serious deficiencies in the regulatory oversight of drugs imported from China and other developing countries. More>>>

Anti-addiction drugs linked to depression
- Daily Times
04/28/2008 - Pills that aimed to help people quit smoking, lose weight and kick other tough addictions, have been found to block the body’s pleasure centres, possibly raising the risk of depression and suicide. More>>>

MRI Side-effects: The Hard Facts on NSF/NFD
-LawyersandSettlements
4/27/2008 - Having a Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) scan using the contrasting agent gadolinium during the procedure may induce the onset of a debilitating malady commonly known as NSF/NFD. More>>>

Ennis & Ennis, P.A. Announces Today: Still Accepting Accutane Case
-openpress
04/26/2008- The Law Offices of Ennis & Ennis, P.A. congratulates attorney Mike Hook and his team for their $10.5 million dollar verdict in a New Jersey state court for a 24 year old woman who was diagnosed with ulcerative colitis after using the acne medication Accutane. Attorney David F. Ennis stated: "We have been fighting with Mike and his team since 2003 and it is refreshing to see these stories are coming to light. Our only concern is there are many more victims out there who have not been advised of their legal rights. More>>>

Alert issued over heparin injection impurity

-Nursing Times

04/25/2008 -- Nurses are being warned to look out for adverse drug reactions (ADRs) after some batches of a heparin injection drug were found to contain impurities. More>>>

Researchers Agree With FDA, Confirm Heparin Contaminant

- dbtechno.com

04/25/2008 -- Researchers in the U.S. have come out and stated that they have found a chemical contaminant in the blood-thinner heparin. The contaminant found in the heparin, which came from China, has been proven to be potentially deadly. More>>>

Impurities found in Sanofi heparin product

-Fierce Pharma

04/25/2008 -- While heparin maker Baxter mulls whether to re-enter the market for that blood thinner, Sanofi-Aventis is announcing that small amounts of an impurity have been found in batches of its heparin injection Lovenox. More>>>

How Tainted Heparin Slipped Through U.S. Safety Net

- MedPage Today

04/25/2008 -- Researchers here revealed today how the adulterated heparin from China evaded detection at the U.S. border and how it killed scores of patients. More>>>

Bayer CEO says faces 78 Trasylol lawsuits in U.S.

-Reuters
04/25/2008 - Germany's Bayer AG is facing 78 lawsuits in the United States linked to its Trasylol drug used to stem bleeding during open heart surgery, its chief executive said on Friday. More>>>

Killer Drug: Company hid deaths from regulator
-enews
04/24/2008- Drug manufacturer Merck knew one of its drugs was killing Alzheimer’s patients – but hid the fact from regulators for several years. The drug, the COX-2 painkiller Vioxx (rofecoxib), was finally taken off the market in 2004 after it was found to cause heart attack.  More>>>

The Hell of Chantix: In Their Own Words
-LawyersandSettlements
04/24/2008 - There is nothing more compelling than someone's own story, and the stories involving Chantix and its Canadian and European counterpart Chantix, abound. More>>>

Massive side effects of TRASYLOL known for a Long Time
-LawyersandSettlements.com
04/24/2008- The medical doctor Professor Dr. Juergen H. Fischer already gave warnings during the 1980's concerning the dangers of TRASYLOL. However, no action was taken. We interviewed Prof. Fischer about the long career of a sometimes deadly drug. More>>>

FDA: Contaminated Heparin Linked To Allergic Reactions
-CNN
04/24/2008- WASHINGTON -(Dow Jones)- A top Food and Drug Administration official said Monday the agency has found a link between contaminated lots of Baxter International Inc.'s (BAX) blood-thinner heparin and hundreds of allergic reactions and dozens of deaths. More>>>

Contaminated blood thinner heparin called a worldwide problem
-LA TIMES
04/24/2008- WASHINGTON -- A contaminated blood thinner from China suspected in dozens of U.S. deaths has become a worldwide public health problem, with 10 other countries detecting the often-toxic ingredient, federal investigators said Monday. More>>>

House Panel Criticizes F.D.A. Role in Drug Cases
-NY Times
04/23/2008 -- House members chastised the Food and Drug Administration on Tuesday for not doing more inspections of foreign drug manufacturers in the wake of a litany of problems with the blood thinner heparin and other products. More>>>

Ortho Evra Patch Makers Settling Cases

-PRNewswire

04/23/2008 - Evidence shows that Ortho Evra is dangerous and should be recalled from the market. Studies found that women using the Ortho Evra birth control patch were twice as likely to develop blood clots compared with those using oral birth control pills. More>>>

Concern From Doctors Regarding the Cardiovascular Safety of GlaxoSmithKline's Avandia Increases Nine-Fold Following Publication of Meta-Analysis

-PRNewswire

04/23/2008- Decision Resources, one of the world's leading research and advisory firms for pharmaceutical and healthcare issues, finds that the percentage of primary care physicians (PCPs) and endocrinologists who consider the cardiovascular safety of GlaxoSmithKline's Avandia to be a major concern increased more than nine-fold following publication of a meta-analysis. More>>>

Lawsuits seek damages from Bayer over anti-bleeding drug

-Miami Herald
04/23/2008 - Eight lawsuits filed in a Florida federal court are seeking damages from Bayer AG over a controversial anti-bleeding drug. More>>>

FDA IDs Link Between Heparin Contaminant, Adverse Reactions

-FDA News

04/23/2008 -- FDA data show a “solid mechanistic link” between a heparin-like contaminant originating in China and serious adverse events and deaths, CDER Director Janet Woodcock said. More>>>

FDA commissioner grilled on drug oversight lapses

-Chicago Tribune

04/23/2008 -- With dozens of people dead after receiving infusions of the contaminated blood thinner heparin, the head of the Food and Drug Administration faced withering scrutiny from a congressional subcommittee. More>>>

What You Need To Know About Heparin

-Campus Progress

04/23/2008 -- It’s been linked to the death of dozens, and it’s leading to a clash between researchers and policy makers in America and China. But… what is it? More>>>

Jury Awards Woman $10.5 Million
In Accutane Suit
- WallStreetJournal
04/22/2008- A New Jersey state-court jury awarded a 24-year-old woman $10.5 million in a case involving acne medication Accutane, one of 425 cases against Hoffmann-LaRoche Inc. alleging that the drug causes inflammatory-bowel disease. More>>>

U.S. Identifies Tainted Heparin in 11 Countries
-NY Times

04/22/2008 -- A contaminated blood thinner from China has been found in drug supplies in 11 countries, and federal officials said Monday they had discovered a clear link between the contaminant and severe reactions now associated with 81 deaths in the United States. More>>>

Death Toll Due to Tainted Heparin in US Rises to 81
-OpEd News

04/22/2008 -- Federal officials in the US now say that the death toll due to adverse reactions to contaminated heparin coming from China has risen to 81, whereas Chinese officials dispute that any deaths were caused by the contaminant. More>>>

China Says Contaminant Didn't Cause Heparin Reactions
-Bloomberg

04/21/2008 -- A contaminant in the blood-thinner heparin that was identified last month by U.S. regulators wasn't responsible for causing allergic reactions and deaths, a Chinese regulator said. More>>>

China says chemical not source of heparin woes
-Reuters

04/21/2008 -- A Chinese investigation concluded that a contaminant found in the blood thinner heparin was not the cause of deaths and allergic reactions related to the drug in the United States, a Chinese health official said on Monday. More>>>

Four More Contaminated Heparin Lawsuits being Filed in Toledo
-LawyersandSettlements

04/20/2008 -- Four more people are filing lawsuits in the Toledo, Ohio area against Baxter Healthcare, the maker of the drug heparin, stating that the drug was contaminated when it was given to their family members. More>>>

Anti-Psychotic Drugs (Zyprexa) Change Metabolism

-American Psysiological Society

04/20/2008 - “Based on these findings we concluded that male rats treated with olanzapine experienced an early disruption of energy metabolism. More>>>

Heart Drug Trasylol Pulled From Market After 50 Percent Increase in Death Rate Discovered

-Natural News
04/20/2008 - Pharmaceutical giant Bayer AG has announced that it is withdrawing its drug Trasylol from the market in response to a request by the FDA, in the face of increasing evidence that the drug increases patients' risk of death. More>>>

Merck downplayed death risk of Vioxx: study
Recall of painkiller biggest in history
-Mike Segar/Reuters
04/20/2008- A new study suggests that drug maker Merck manipulated data about the drug Vioxx. The drug's 2004 recall was the largest in history. More>>>

Questions about Trasylol Since 1963
LawyersandSettlements.com
04/20/2008- Cologne, Germany: When Bayer AG convenes its annual stockholder's meeting on April 25th in Cologne, the German group Coalition against BAYER Dangers (CBG) will be on hand to introduce countermotions to the proceedings, one of which will focus on the history, and dangers of Trasylol (known as Aprotinin). More>>>

Tainted Heparin Discussed By U.S., Other Countries, FDA Says
- Bloomberg
04/20/2008-The U.S. hosted a meeting of international regulators that ended today on the blood-thinner heparin, a drug linked to allergic reactions and deaths. More>>>

Anti-smoking drug has ties to serious mental illness
-The Daily Telegram
04/18/2008 - Melinda and Kenny Peterson wanted to kick their two-pack-a-day smoking habit. In early January, the Green Bay couple started taking three-month prescriptions of Chantix, a new anti-smoking pill. About six weeks later, they weren’t smoking at all. More>>>

FDA: Glaxo withheld Avandia studies
Bloomberg News
04/17/2008-GlaxoSmithKline PLC, Europe's largest drugmaker, failed to properly disclose studies of Avandia, the diabetes pill linked to potentially deadly side effects, U.S. regulators said. More>>>

Man Kills Self While Taking Anti-Smoking Drug
-Fox News
04/17/2008 - Omer Jama, 39, of Bolton, England, was a Sky Sports video editor who was taking the drug to try and kick his pack-a-day habit, the U.K.'s Daily Mail reports. More>>>

Vital Vioxx Details 'Manipulated'
-WebMD
4/16/2008 - Two studies appearing in Tuesday's Journal of the American Medical Association have prompted the journal's editors to call for "drastic action" to prevent drug companies from misrepresenting data from clinical trials. More>>>

Relying 'Solely' On FDA To Judge Safety Of Ortho Evra Patch Is A Mistake, Editorial Says
- Medical NewsToday
04/16/2008 - It would be a mistake to "rely solely" on FDA to judge the safety and efficacy of the birth control patch Ortho Evra, a New York Times editorial says. The editorial notes that the agency is short of skilled scientists and might not detect or appreciate the significance of important information buried "deep in the bowels" of a report (New York Times, 4/14). More>>>

FDA fears heparin tainted on purpose
-Boston Globe
04/16/2008 -  US regulators suspect that Baxter International Inc.'s blood thinner heparin, linked to deaths and allergic reactions, was intentionally contaminated to increase profit. More>>>

The Dangers in Pre-emption

-New York Times

04/14/2008- The pharmaceutical industry and its good friends in the Bush administration are working hard to prevent consumers from filing damage suits for injuries caused by federally approved drug products. They may soon get a helping hand from the Supreme Court, which has already barred many suits over faulty medical devices. More>>>

Heparin death tally worsens; FDA issues device warning
-InPharmaTechnologists

04/14/2008 -  The number of people whose deaths are associated with an allergic reaction to heparin has shot up as the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has updated its tally. More>>>

Yet Another Study Confirms That Higher Doses of Celebrex Are Associated with Increased Risk of Heart Attack and Stroke
-InjuryBoard.com
04/14/2008- On March 31, 2008, a study funded by the National Cancer Institute, was published in the medical journal Circulation and analyzed data from six separate studies involving nearly 8,000 patients concerning the safety of the drug Celebrex. Data showed that patients who took two 400 mg doses of Celebrex daily had a three times (or 300%) higher risk of suffering heart attacks, strokes, heart failure, blood clots, and cardiovascular death. More>>>

Trasylol: “What the Hell Did They Give These People?”
-LawyersandSettlements.com

04/13/2008- Port Lavaca, TX: Alice G. says that in the six years since her mother died, her family has struggled to understand what happened. With the recent news about Trasylol, Alice says she may have a better understanding of why her mother died. More>>>

Johnson & Johnson seeks to put blame on regulators
-HeraldTribune
04/12/2008-For years, Johnson & Johnson obscured evidence that its popular Ortho Evra birth control patch delivered much more estrogen than standard birth control pills, potentially increasing the risk of blood clots and strokes, according to internal company documents. More>>>

Glaxo Angers the FDA

-Motley Fool

04/11/2008- Every large-cap pharma seems to have at least one marketed drug that produces endless streams of woe for them. In GlaxoSmithKline's (NYSE: GSK) case, the drug in question is its type 2 diabetes compound, Avandia. More>>>

A prescription for drug disaster

- Georgetown Voice

04/11/2008 - If an Ohio District Court rules in favor of Johnson & Johnson in an upcoming case, it will set the precedent that drug companies are no longer responsible for their medicines’ unadvertised side effects. This legal shield would let drug companies literally get away with murder. More>>>

FDA: Heparin Linked To 62 Deaths
-AHN
04/11/2008 -  The Food and Drug Administration has linked 62 deaths to heparin, a blood thinner drug manufactured in China. More>>>

GSK rebuked for missing Avandia reports

-Fierce Pharma

04/10/2008- GlaxoSmithKline got a trip to the FDA woodshed for failing to regularly report post-marketing data it was gathering on the diabetes med Avandia. GSK failed to include updates on as many as 18 different trials in its annual reports to the agency on that med. The agency rebuked GSK, ordering the company to get its act together pronto. More>>>

Bloomington Woman Says NuvaRing Nearly Took Her Life

-Central Illinois

04/10/2008 - A Bloomington woman nearly loses her life and she says it's because of switching from birth control pills to the NuvaRing. More>>>

Baxter's Heparin Killed Mother and Son, Family Says
-Bloomberg
04/10/2008 -  Bonnie Hubley, 65, died in December. A month later, so did her 47-year-old son.
More>>>

Top 10 Deadliest Drugs
InjuryBoard.com
04/09/2008-In 1988, the AIDS activist group ACT UP staged a protest that led to a dramatic change in the US Food and Drug Adminstration (FDA) drug approval process. Previously, the drug approval process was slow, bureaucratic and unresponsive to patients who were desperately ill and might not live to see a drug approved. By 1995, the process became streamlined and dying patients with no other options were given early access to promising medications. Drugs that were granted “priority review” status saw the approval times drop from just under three years to as little as six months. More>>>

FDA: Glaxo holds studies on Avandia-
Foodconsumer.org

04/09/2008- GlaxoSmithKline Plc failed to report all the required studies on its diabetes drug Avandia to the Food and Drug Administration, the agency said in a warning letter released on Tuesday. More>>>

Sen. Grassley Knocks Psychiatrist’s Funding from AstraZeneca
-Wall Street Journal

04/09/2008 - A University of Cincinnati psychiatrist who was the lead author of a 2002 study that concluded kids did well on AstraZeneca’s antipsychotic Seroquel has received hundreds of thousands of dollars from the company since then, according to Sen. Charles Grassley (R-Iowa). More>>>

New York Times Examines Johnson And Johnson's Pre-Emption Defense Over Safety Of Birth Control Patch
- Medical News Today
04/09/2008 - The New York Times on Sunday examined Johnson & Johnson's use of the legal doctrine of preemption to defend against claims that the birth control patch Ortho Evra causes blood clots or other adverse effects. More>>>

Glaxo Failed to Disclose Avandia Studies, FDA Says

-Bloomberg

04/08/2008- GlaxoSmithKline Plc, Europe's largest drugmaker, failed to properly disclose studies of the diabetes pill Avandia after it was linked to potentially deadly side effects, U.S. regulators said. More>>>

Osteoporosis meds and bone collapse: weighing the risks

Globe and Mail
04/08/2008 - Osteonecrosis of the jaw, a disease in which a patient's jawbone rots and dies, has been associated with the use of bisphosphonates, a popular class of medication for the treatment of osteoporosis. More>>>

Doctors demand freeze on use of diabetes drug for heart patients
The Scottsman
4/07/2008-SCOTTISH doctors have said there is "no defence" for the use of a widely prescribed diabetes drug after warnings that it should not be used in patients with heart problems, The Scotsman can reveal. The consultants, who work in the NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde area, recommend no new patients are given Avandia – also known as rosiglitazone. More>>>

Johnson & Johnson Looking to Ban Ortho Evra Lawsuits
NewsInferno.com
04/07/2008-Johnson & Johnson, the maker of the Ortho Evra birth control patch, is looking to the courts to protect it from lawsuits stemming from the defective device.  Johnson & Johnson is asserting that Ortho Evra lawsuits should not be allowed to go forward because the contraceptive patch was approved by the Food & Drug Administration (FDA) - even though it is becoming increasingly clear that Johnson & Johnson withheld vital Ortho Evra safety information from the agency for years. More>>>

Actavis Recalling Remaining Lots of Fentanyl Pain Patches
InjuryBoard.com
04/03/2008-Actavis Inc has recalled all remaining lots of Fentanyl Pain Patches. As with the previous recalls, there may be a defect that could cause fentanyl to leak directly to the skin of the patient or caregiver and cause an Fentanyl overdose. More>>>

Zyprexa Lawsuit Getting Underway In Alaska
- dogflu.ca

03/08/2008 - It is being reported that drug maker Eli Lilly and Co is facing a lot of criticism over their delay in warning doctors of the dangerous side effects associated with their drug Zyprexa. More>>>

Lilly Waited Too Long to Warn About Schizophrenia Drug, Doctor Testifies
- nytimes.com

03/08/2008 - Eli Lilly, the drug maker, could and should have warned physicians as early as 1998 about the link between Zyprexa, its best-selling schizophrenia medicine, and diabetes, an expert witness told jurors Friday in a lawsuit that claims that Zyprexa has caused many mentally ill people to develop diabetes. More>>>

Leavitt, Congressional Committee Negotiate on Ketek Documents
- FDA News

03/07/2008 - HHS Secretary Mike Leavitt has gone part of the way toward avoiding a possible contempt of Congress charge from the House of Representatives over his reluctance to comply with a subpoena for documents related to the FDA’s approval of sanofi-aventis’ antibiotic Ketek. More>>>

Suits mounting against makers of MRI-enhancing dye
- FierceHelathcare.com

03/07/2008 - A growing list of suits are being filed against makers of gadolinium contrast dyes used to enhance MRI results, which are thought to be causing some cases of a progressive, untreatable and possibly fatal disease known as Nephrogenic Systemic Fibrosis or Nephorgenic Fibrosing Dermopathy. More>>>

Kidney Disease and MRI a Deadly Combination
- Best Syndication, CA

03/06/2008 - MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) is a common and, in most cases, safe medical test. However, for people with kidney disease, MRI can cause a rare disease called NSF/NFD (nephrogenic systemic fibrosis or nephrogenic fibrosing dermopathy). More>>>

Millions of dollars at stake in Zyprexa trials
- Anchorage Daily News

03/06/2008 - Jury selection for one of the biggest civil trials ever in Alaska is now under way in Anchorage Superior Court with attorneys from around the country, an instant Internet feed for those willing to pay big bucks, and tens of millions of dollars riding on the verdict. More>>>

Merck says it's ready to settle claims with more than 44,000 former Vioxx users
- ABC News

03/05/2008 - The pharmaceutical company Merck says it's ready to settle claims with more than 44,000 former Vioxx users. More>>>

Merck: More than 44,000 in line for Vioxx settlement
- bloomberg

03/05/2008 - Merck & Co. Inc. said yesterday that more than 44,000 plaintiffs who sued the company over its withdrawn Vioxx painkiller had submitted initial information seeking payment for injuries under a $4.85 billion settlement. More>>>

Merck Pays Out Billions For Vioxx
- CBS News

03/05/2008 -A nearly five billion dollar settlement over the withdrawn painkiller Vioxx is on the track to move out to thousands of affected consumers. More>>>

FDA's review process under investigation
- Forbes

03/04/2008 - The government's watchdog agency is investigating whether the Food and Drug Administration's drug-review process cleared two blockbuster medications without sufficient proof of their safety or effectiveness. More>>>

Court weighs rights of future children
- thestar.com

03/01/2008 - Jaime Paxton is a miracle, both in her mother's eyes and in the sometimes-fickle world of statistics. Under the law of averages, she shouldn't have been born. More>>>

Mother Sues Drug Company
- VANCOUVER/CKNW(AM980)

03/01/2008 - A Surrey woman and her infant daughter are launching a class-action lawsuit against the manufacturer of a commonly-used anti-depressant medication. More>>>

AstraZeneca Submits sNDA for SEROQUEL XR(TM) for the Treatment of Major Depressive Disorder
- CNN

02/29/2008 - AstraZeneca today announced the submission of a supplemental New Drug Application (sNDA) to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for once- daily SEROQUEL XR(TM) (quetiapine fumarate) Extended-Release Tablets to seek approval for the treatment of major depressive disorder (MDD) as monotherapy, adjunct therapy, and maintenance therapy in adult patients. More>>>

Lilly Girds for Zyprexa Trial & Suffers FDA Rejection
- blog.wsj.com

02/28/2008 - Even as Eli Lilly’s lawyers are getting ready to defend a Zyprexa case in Alaska, the company’s got bad news from the FDA, four time zones away. The agency refused to approve the company’s application for a long-acting form of the anti-psychotic drug the company said this morning. More>>>

Drug-Coated Stents Boost Death Rate by Over 400% in Heart Attack Patients
- Natural News

02/28/2008 - Drug-coated stents increased the risk of death in certain heart attack patients by nearly five times according to a recent study presented at the meeting of the European Society of Cardiology in Vienna. More>>>

Drug Company 'Eli Lilly' In Advanced Settlement Talks with Federal Investigators
- Tech News

02/27/2008 - Schizophrenia is a mental illness that affects over 2 million people in the U.S. Symptoms include severely impaired thinking, emotions, and behaviors. More>>>

Trasylol Linked to Over 20,000 Deaths
- houston.injuryboard.com

02/26/2008 - A recent study found that patients that received Bayer's Trasylol during heart surgery were significantly more likely to die within the next decade. More>>>

Trasylol Linked to Death and Kidney Problems Following Surgery
- galvestonbay.injuryboard.com

02/26/2008 - Two studies published in the New England Journal of Medicine have linked the drug Trasylol, used to reduce bleeding during open-heart surgery, to an increased risk of death and kidney damage among other concerns. More>>>

Dark side of pill to help smokers kick habit
- Star Ledger, NJ

02/25/2008 - When Pfizer's anti-smoking pill Chantix came on the market 18 months ago, it was touted as more effective than existing treatments at helping break the deadly nicotine addiction. More>>>

State AG sues two drug companies
- helenair.com

02/22/2008 - Attorney General Mike McGrath has sued two national pharmaceutical companies and accused them of manufacturing certain prescription drugs that were “in defective condition and unreasonably dangerous.” More>>>

FDA Posts MedWatch Side Effect Alert for Osteoporosis Drugs
- naturalnews.com

02/21/2008 - The FDA recently issued a statement that bisphosphonate drugs used to treat osteoporosis may cause "severe and sometimes incapacitating bone, joint, and/or muscle pain". More>>>

Bayer’s Trasylol Poses Higher Death Risk Among Patients, Studies Say
- enews20.com

02/21/2008 - Two recent U. S. studies reinforced the already existing claims that the Bayer AG’s clotting drug Trasylol poses a deadly risk on heart surgery patients.More>>>

Stupak Turns Up the Heat on FDA
- Wall Street Journal

02/20/2008 - Rep. Bart Stupak argued for years that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration wasn't doing a good job protecting Americans from unsafe drugs. More>>>

Bisphosphonates and Osteonecrosis of the Jaw
- MIMS, Ireland

02/20/2008 - Bisphosphonates are a class of medicinal substances approved for various indications related to their inhibitory effect on bone resorption in certain malignant and benign diseases, including osteoporosis.More>>>

Medication Under a Microscope
- Washington Post

02/19/2008 - A series of surprising findings about some of the most widely accepted assumptions in medicine has renewed debate about how aggressively doctors use drugs to prevent and treat some of the nation's leading health problems.More>>>

Trasylol: what 60 Minutes didn't tell you
- Point of Law

02/19/2008 - We got a free preview of plaintiffs' opening statement when "60 Minutes," following its victims-and-villains storyline, makes much of the fact Bayer didn't reveal the existence of an unfavorable Trasylol study to the FDA at a September 21 advisory committee meeting.More>>>

Too Many Deaths Caused by Trasylol: 22,000 People
- Huliq.com

02/18/2008 - At least one critic of the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) says the organization acted too slowly when it learned of the dangers of Trasylol. According to Dr. Dennis Mangano, approximately 22,000 lives could have been saved if the FDA had removed Trasylol from the market when it received evidence that the drug was linked to thousands of deaths.More>>>

First Avandia Lawsuits Filed, Many More Expected
- NEWSInferno.com

02/18/2008 - Avandia lawsuits against GlaxoSmithKline over the drug’s alleged cardiac side effects are beginning to make their way through the courts, and many more are expected.More>>>

Actavis Recalls Certain Fentanyl Patches in the US as Precaution
- FDA-Recall-Firm Press Release

02/17/2008 - Actavis Inc., the United States manufacturing and marketing division of the international generic pharmaceutical company Actavis Group hf, today announced that 14 lots of Fentanyl transdermal system CII patches sold in the United States by Actavis' subsidiary Actavis South Atlantic LLC are being voluntarily recalled from wholesalers and pharmacies as a precaution.More>>>

Researcher: FDA Was Too Slow On Trasylol
- CBS

02/15/2008 - A renowned researcher calculates that 22,000 patients could have been saved if the Food and Drug Administration removed the heart surgery drug Trasylol two years ago, when his study revealed widespread death associated with it.More>>>

22,000 died amid delayed Bayer drug recall: doctor
- Reuters

02/15/2008 - The lives of 22,000 patients could have been saved if U.S. regulators had been quicker to remove a Bayer AG drug used to stem bleeding during open heart surgery, according to a medical researcher interviewed by CBS Television's 60 Minutes program.More>>>

Congressmen Fault FDA, Aventis, IRB in Ketek Study
- FDA News

02/14/2008 - The FDA, Aventis, a contract research organization and an institutional review board (IRB) all failed to report or investigate fraud committed in a clinical trial of Aventis’ antibiotic Ketek, a House subcommittee charged.More>>>

Congress accuses HHS and FDA of contempt in Ketek case
- PharmaTimes

02/13/2008 - The latest installment in the US Congress’ investigation into the handling of data regarding the controversial antibiotic Ketek has put pressure on the drug’s maker, Sanofi-Aventis and seen government officials and drug regulators stand accused of contempt.More>>>

White House rejects subpoena
- Bloomberg

02/13/2008 - The Bush administration has declined to comply with a congressional subpoena for documents related to Sanofi-Aventis' antibiotic Ketek.More>>>

FDA Agent Faults Sanofi-Aventis for Ketek Trial Troubles
- Wall Street Journal

02/12/2008 - Just when you think it’s all Vytorin all the time in Congress, they change things up a bit.More>>>

Eli Lilly in Shareholder Cross Hairs
- FDA News

02/11/2008 - While Eli Lilly's Zyprexa troubles with the federal government may be coming to an end, the company faces new legal problems with a recent lawsuit filed by two of the company's shareholders.More>>>

Aprotinin (Trasylol) Kidney Risk Linked to Off-Pump Bypass Plus ACE Inhibitors
- MedPage Today

02/11/2008 - The risk of renal dysfunction after aprotinin (Trasylol) was used during heart surgery appears limited to patients also given ACE inhibitors during an off-pump bypass, suggested a retrospective analysis here.More>>>

Florida Plaintiffs Want In on Vioxx Settlement
- FDA News

02/08/2008 - Approximately 350 Florida plaintiffs who say they were harmed by Merck’s painkiller Vioxx want to join in a huge settlement that closed Nov. 9, 2007, which the company reached with a much larger group of plaintiffs, claiming state law permits them to file claims until October.More>>>

Merck to pay over $649M in settlement
- Asbury Park Press

02/08/2008 - Merck & Co., the third-largest U.S. drugmaker, will pay more than $649 million to settle federal and state claims that it underpaid Medicaid rebates and gave incentives to doctors to prescribe the company's products.More>>>

Bayer's Trasylol Safe in Some Surgeries, Study Says
- Bloomberg

02/08/2008 - Bayer AG's Trasylol, an anti-bleeding drug that was pulled off the market last year, is safe when used during a certain type of cardiac surgery, researchers said. More>>>

Aprotinin and Ace Inhibitors During Off-Pump Cardiac Surgery Associated with Postoperative Renal Dysfunction
- PharmaLive

02/07/2008 - The blood saving-drug aprotinin appears safe during on-pump cardiac surgery. However, More>>>

Long-Acting Zyprexa Works, But Has Sedation Risk, FDA Says
- Wall Street Journal

02/04/2008 - The Food and Drug Administration said Monday that a long-acting, injectable form of Eli Lilly & Co.'s top-selling drug Zyprexa was effective at treating schizophrenia but caused "profound sedation" in certain patients.More>>>

Diabetes drug and conflicts of interest
- Science Daily

02/04/2008 - The House Energy and Commerce Committee’s investigation into sanofi-aventis’ controversial antibiotic Ketek gained steam as the panel voted on subpoenas covering individuals and numerous agency documents. More>>>

FDA approves update to label on Ortho birth control patch
-Grand Forks Herald

02/01/2008 - The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved additional changes to the Ortho Evra Contraceptive Transdermal (Skin) Patch label to include the results of a new epidemiology study that found that users of the birth control patch were at higher risk of developing serious blood clots, also known as venous thromboembolism or VTE, than women using birth control pills. VTE can lead to pulmonary embolism.More>>>

Energy and Commerce Committee Subpoenas FDA Over Ketek
-FDA News

01/31/2008 - The House Energy and Commerce Committee’s investigation into sanofi-aventis’ controversial antibiotic Ketek gained steam as the panel voted on subpoenas covering individuals and numerous agency documents. More>>>

Lilly Is in Talks to Settle Zyprexa Allegations
-Wall Street Journal
01/31/2008 - Eli Lilly & Co. is in advanced settlement talks with federal investigators regarding the company's marketing of antipsychotic drug Zyprexa, after a grand jury subpoena late last year raised the prospect that the company could be indicted.More>>>

Lilly subpoenaed on Zyprexa marketing
-LA Times

01/31/2008 - Eli Lilly & Co. said Wednesday that it received a subpoena in November from a U.S. grand jury in Pennsylvania seeking documents involving the marketing of the company's best selling drug, the antipsychotic Zyprexa.More>>>

Eli Lilly (LLY): The Drug Companies Never Learn
-24/7 Wall Street
01/31/2008 - At least once a year, and probably more often, a big drug company makes a settlement or faces suits over not disclosing the bad effects of one or more of its products.More>>>

Trouble Brews Over Merck Product
-Wall Street Journal

01/30/2008 - Merck & Co.'s pending $4.85 billion Vioxx settlement is expected to bring more than three years of litigation to an end. But looming challenges to some top-selling products More>>>

Avandia Study Results Were Leaked Early to laxo
-CNBC

01/30/2008 - The wall between a prestigious medical journal and a major drug company may have been shattered.More>>>

Health Canada raises red flag on birth control patch
-Brock Press

01/30/2008 - The Evra birth control patch may be more convenient than the pill for many Canadian women, but while new evidence suggests it may also be more dangerous, doctors are urging calm.More>>>

Revised Warning for Ortho Evra Patch
-FDA News

01/28/2008 - The warnings section of physician labeling for Johnson & Johnson’s (J&J) birth control patch Ortho Evra was updated Jan. 18 to reflect data from a new epidemiology study that found the product increases the risk of venous thromboembolism (VTE)More>>>

FDA Procedures Draw Scrutiny
-Wall Street Journal

01/25/2008 - Controversies about cholesterol drug Vytorin and diabetes drug Avandia are reigniting debate over what evidence the Food and Drug Administration requires to approve drugs More>>>

Bypass Bests Drug-Eluting Stents in Survival Comparison
-MedPage Today

01/24/2008 - In a head-to-head comparison of coronary artery bypass surgery and drug-eluting stents, the advantage went to CABG with significantly better overall survival and lower risk of recurrent myocardial infarction.More>>>

Review Looks at Latest Birth Control Options
-Health Behavior News Science

01/24/2008 - With many women still searching for the perfect birth control method, a systematic review analyzes a host of studies comparing the contraceptive skin patch or vaginal ring to the pill.More>>>

New questions on drug-eluted stents
-Times Union

01/24/2008 - People who have multiple heart blockages and a drug-eluted stent in their heart die at a higher rate than those who undergo heart bypass surgery, according to a University of Albany researcher.More>>>

Super-Thin Drug-Free Coating 'Hides' Stent as It Unblocks Heart Arteries
-PR-USA.net

01/22/2008 - A new stent with a nanothin surface application shows promise in opening and healing blocked heart arteries without the life-threatening dangers of drug-eluting stents, according to a study being presented at the 20th annual International Symposium on Endovascular Therapy (ISET).More>>>

Coronary Stent with Ultrathin Coat Shows Promise in Initial Clinical Trial
-MedPage Today
01/22/2008 - It's the Twiggy of coronary-artery stents, an investigational device with a nanothin inert coating that elutes no drug and lets patients halt dual antiplatelet therapy in a month.More>>>

'Drug-Free' Stent Coating Shows Promise
-Washington Post

01/21/2008 - A new kind of coated stent holds promise for overcoming the major problems with these tubes that are inserted to keep arteries open after clot-clearing angioplasty, Italian researchers report.More>>>

Avandia, human genome among the things we've learned from in the past year
-Mansfield News Journal

01/21/2008 - Every year the Harvard Health Letter chooses what it considers to be the top 10 health stories of the year. During 2007, there weren't many instant breakthroughs that would qualify as scientific discoveries. Instead, we saw a slow, steady accumulation of data from multiple studies and clinical trials that finally reached a critical mass that could be considered an important health story.More>>>

List of problem prescription drugs is growing
-NewsDay

01/21/2008 - An increasing number of prescription drugs - some that have been widely promoted through seductive advertising - are turning out to have problems long after they've reached the market.More>>>

FDA Approves Update to Label on Birth Control Patch
-FDA News

01/18/2008 - The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) today approved additional changes to the Ortho Evra Contraceptive Transdermal (Skin) Patch label to include the results of a new epidemiology study that found that users of the birth control patch were at higher risk of developing serious blood clots, also known as venous thromboembolism (VTE), than women using birth control pills.More>>>

Pfizer's Chantix Warning: Hazardous To Mental Health?
-CNBC
01/18/2008 - This doesn't come as any big surprise, but Pfizer announced this morning that it is putting a warning--and that's the company's word--on the label of its stop-smoking pill Chantix. It says people taking the drug should be watched for "serious neuropsychiatric symptoms, including changes in behavior, agitation, depressed mood, suicidal ideation and suicidal behavior." More>>>

Diabetes and the Drugs to Control It Could Shorten Your Life
-Reuters

01/17/2008 - Allergic-like reactions to intravenous contrast media containing gadolinium are rare in children and adults, according to a report in the December American Journal of Radiology.More>>>

Allergic-like reactions to gadolinium-containing contrast media are uncommon
-Reuters

01/17/2008 - Allergic-like reactions to intravenous contrast media containing gadolinium are rare in children and adults, according to a report in the December American Journal of Radiology.More>>>

Study cites rare risk in use of bone drug UBC research cites potential harm for post-menopausal women with osteoarthritis
-Vancouver Sun

01/16/2008 - Drugs used mainly to prevent bone fractures or treat osteoarthritis, often in postmenopausal women, may cause bone tissue to crumble and die in rare situations, according to a B.C.-led study.More>>>

Popular Osteoporosis Drugs Triple Risk Of Painful Bone Necrosis, Study Finds
-Science Daily

01/15/2008 - A University of British Columbia and Vancouver Coastal Health Research Institute study has found that a popular class of osteoporosis drugs nearly triples the risk of developing bone necrosis, a condition that can lead to disfigurement and incapacitating pain.More>>>

Doctors Say Avandia Warning Label Should Tout Vegan Diet
-Diabetes Health

01/15/2008 - A professional doctors' group has petitioned the Food and Drug Administration to require that Avandia's warning label include a statement that a low-fat vegan diet is a safer, more effective approach to lowering blood sugar levels than the drug itself.More>>>

Long-term treatment after drug-eluting stents is key
-HealthTech Wire

01/13/2008 - Dual antiplatelet therapy is extremely important after implanting a drug-eluting stent to open a blocked coronary artery, according to updated joint Guidelines for Percutaneous Coronary Intervention from the American College of Cardiology.More>>>

Merck signs deal for Fosamax authorized generic
-Reuters

01/11/2008 - Merck & Co Inc said on Friday it had signed a deal for an authorized generic form of its blockbuster Fosamax osteoporosis drug, to become available after the U.S. patent on the world's top-selling osteoporosis drug lapses on February 6.More>>>

Blood clots, deaths linked to Evra
-The Gazette, Canada

01/11/2008 - The Evra birth control patch may be more convenient than the pill for many Canadian women, but new evidence suggests it may also be more dangerous.More>>>

UK agency to rule on stent cost-effectiveness soon
-Reuters

01/11/2008 - According to a November 2007 report by the Senate Finance Committee, an analysis by FDA scientists presented at a July 30, 2007, safety panel meeting estimates that Avandia has caused approximately 83,000 excess heart attacks since coming on the market.More>>>

Government Estimates 83,000 Excess Heart Attacks Caused By Avandia
-Dissident Voice

01/09/2008 - According to a November 2007 report by the Senate Finance Committee, an analysis by FDA scientists presented at a July 30, 2007, safety panel meeting estimates that Avandia has caused approximately 83,000 excess heart attacks since coming on the market.More>>>

Drug company, adverse reaction report remind of birth control blood clot risks
-Canadian Press

01/09/2008 - Sixteen cases of blood clots and one heart attack among users of a birth control patch have been reported since the patch was introduced to Canada in early 2004, says a report.More>>>

Red flag for birth control patch
-GlobeLife, Canada

01/09/2008 - Two Canadian women have died and numerous others have suffered blood clots, heart attacks and other medical problems in the span of about four years after using the well-known but increasingly controversial Evra birth-control patch, according to a Health Canada report.More>>>

Avandia study shows increased heart risks, death
-Asbury Park Press

01/08/2008 - Older patients who took Avandia had a higher risk of heart attacks, congestive heart failure and death than those on other diabetes pills, according to a study of nearly 160,000 Canadians.More>>>

U.S. warns of severe pain with osteoporosis drugs
-Reuters

01/07/2008 - Patients treated with widely used osteoporosis drugs may develop severe and sometimes disabling pain in muscles, joints and bones, U.S. officials said on Monday in an alert highlighting the previously known risk.More>>>

Judge denies class in Fosamax cases against Merck
-Reuters

01/04/2008 - A U.S. federal judge has denied motions to certify classes of users of osteoporosis drug Fosamax who wanted Merck & Co to set up a program to monitor them for an ailment involving jaw bone decay.More>>>

Allergic reactions to gadolinium-based contrast agents are rare, study finds
-FDA News

01/03/2008 - An analyst with Merrill Lynch believes the controversy over cardiovascular risks posed by GlaxoSmithKline’s Avandia may have caused diabetics and their doctors to avoid treatment altogether.More>>>

Life saving stents pose problems for some
-Petoskey News Review

12/31/2007 - When Lynnet Johnson got her first heart stent in 2000, she thought it was the solution to her heart problem — not the start of a new one.More>>>

Allergic reactions to gadolinium-based contrast agents are rare, study finds
-EurekaAlert

12/28/2007 - Allergic-like reactions to gadolinium-containing contrast injections in adults and pediatric patients (those younger than 19 years of age) are rare, according to a recent study conducted by researchers at the University of Michigan Health Systems in Ann Arbor. More>>>

Year in Health: Here's to your safety
-USA Today

12/23/2007 - Persistent questions about the safety of both prescription and over-the-counter drugs, a menacing microbe spreading throughout the U.S. and a globe-trotting TB patient garnered headlines this past year.More>>>

Trasylol licence suspended
-Health Care Republic

12/21/2007 - The licence for Trasylol (aprotinin) has been suspended on the advice of the Commission on Human Medicines (CHM). Global marketing of the drug had already been suspended voluntarily by the marketing authorization holders (Bayer plc and Nordic Pharma) due to safety concerns.More>>>

Regulator acts on risk alert for bone drugs
-The Australian

12/15/2007 - Australia's drug regulator has moved to ensure consistent warnings of possible side effects are published for drugs used to treat osteoporosis and bone cancer, after claims some patients were not adequately warned the drugs have been linked to a progressive decay of jaw bones.More>>>

'Jaw death' suit filed against Merck
-Southeast Texas Record

12/13/2007 - A Houston law firm has filed a searing "jaw death" lawsuit against Merck, alleging the drug manufacturer knew its medication Fosamax was defective from the start and, in spite of the dangers, went so far as to bribe physicians to prescribe the drug.More>>>

Study: 2 diabetes drugs raise heart risks
-Chicago Tribune

12/12/2007 - Older diabetes patients treated with Takeda Pharmaceutical North American Inc.'s Actos and GlaxoSmithKline PLC's Avandia had a "significant" increased risk of heart attack, congestive heart failure and death compared with those taking a more established treatment, according to a study in this week's Journal of the American Medical Association.More>>>

J&J Altered Birth-Control Patch Data to Hide Risks
-Bloomberg

11/29/2007 - Johnson & Johnson misled doctors and regulators for years by altering and withholding medical data about the health risks of its Ortho Evra birth-control patch, lawyers for women suing the company claim in court papers.More>>>

UK marketing authorization suspend