Although Diprivan is widely used every day in hospitals and surgery centers across the United States, very few people, outside of medical personnel, were familiar with it or had even heard of it prior to its being found in Michael Jackson’s home after his untimely death. And while we still don’t yet know if it was related in any way to his death, many people want to know more about Diprivan and what its potential effects might have been.
I worked for ICI, now Astra Zeneca, the pharmaceutical company that originally developed Diprivan, in the mid-80s during the time it was being prepared for market launch. I was part of the team helping to train the sales people who would later be selling the product. But Diprivan was unlike any product previously sold by these representatives because it was going to be used by anesthesiologists in the operating room before and […]
Original post by admin and weightlossopinions.com
In an unusual move earlier this week, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) alerted consumers that Zicam Cold Remedy products have been associated with long lasting or even permanent loss of smell. FDA recommends that consumers stop using these products and that they throw away any that might still be in their homes. The affected products include Zicam Cold Remedy Nasal Gel, Zicam Cold Remedy Nasal Swabs, and Zicam Cold Remedy Swabs, Kids Size (the last one is a previously discontinued product). The products had been sold by Matrixx Initiatives to reduce the duration and severity of cold symptoms; however, they have never been shown to be effective.
These products were formulated and sold for intranasal use and may have contained zinc, which is potentially toxic to the nasal membranes. The FDA emphasized that their advisory does not concern oral zinc tablets and lozenges that are taken by mouth. Ironically, oral […]
Original post by admin and weightlossopinions.com
Using someone else’s prescription medicine is a lot like playing Russian roulette – you might get away unscathed, and then again you might not. And it could have devastating consequences. Just because we see prescription medicines advertised on TV doesn’t mean they are safe for everyone. There are good reasons why you can’t buy them over the counter. A physician takes many factors into account before prescribing a medication for you, including your current condition, your past medical history, your other medications and the likely risks and benefits of the drug to you as an individual. After making this decision he or she will then explain how to take the medication, when to take it, how much and how long to take it, what else you can and can’t take with it, and what to expect after you take it – both the good and the bad. And after all […]
Original post by admin and weightlossopinions.com
Two major pieces of news for people afflicted by fibromyalgia have appeared in the past few weeks; namely, the FDA approval of Savella (milnacipran), the third drug to receive federal backing for fibromyalgia, and the publication of a major meta-analysis in the prestigious Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), which confirmed that antidepressant medications (including Savella) can improve pain, depression, fatigue, sleep disturbances, and quality of life. Of note, however, is that the JAMA report also concluded that older medications, called tricyclic antidepressants, are most effective for treating fibromyalgia, even though they are not FDA approved for such use. It is often the case that older and now generic medications, such as the tricyclic antidepressant amitriptyline, can be effective but lack pharmaceutical company sponsors willing to spend the time and money necessary to obtain FDA approval. Physicians are free to prescribe medications, regardless of FDA approval status, as they […]
Original post by natalieb and weightlossopinions.com
When death strikes someone at a young age it is always tragic. And there are always questions. For most, the questions are limited to the family, friends and perhaps to some in the local community. For celebrities, the questions become national, even international. Sometimes the questions are about the cause of death, but they always involve the whys. Why them, why now, why our child? These latter questions are existential in nature and are rarely, if ever, fully answered. The former, however, are the purview of the pathologist, a physician with specialized training in solving the physical causes of death. Sometimes the answers are obvious, sometimes not. On rare occasion, they are never determined. In the case of Heath Ledger, the questions remained unanswered as of this writing.
I’m a pathologist by training. During the years between 1976 and 1981 […]
Original post by admin and weightlossopinions.com
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/15/business/15drug.html
A clinical trial of a widely used cholesterol drug (Zetia, which is in Vytorin) has raised questions both about the medicine’s effectiveness and about the behavior of the pharmaceutical companies that conducted the study, cardiologists said Monday.
As if that wasn’t bad enough:
In a press release, Merck and Schering said that not only did Zetia fail to slow the accumulation of fatty plaque in the arteries, it actually seemed to contribute to plaque formation — although by such a small amount that the finding could have been a result of chance.
It amazes me how all of the ‘alternative’ products that are out there to improve your health, many of which are effective, are not able to get any kind of official FDA approval. However, the huge drug companies can push out garbage like Vytorin and millions of people trust the drug companies and the FDA and take it and just […]
Original post by admin and weightlossopinions.com
