HIV Drugs Side Effects HealthDay (1/31, Dallas) reports, “– Although there remains a possibility that some of these medications might cause birth defects, such as cleft lip and palate,” according to a study published in the January issue of Cleft Palate–Craniofacial Journal. To analyze the possible association between antiretroviral drugs and birth defects,Vassiliki Cartsos, an associate [...]
RxRecall Helps Streamline Data On Drugs
Drug Recalls RxRecall.com provides timely, accurate information regarding dangerous drug investigations, black box warnings, and prescription medication recalls. Before a drug can be introduced to market, it must be rigorously tested for potential side effects and approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Unfortunately, many drugs do not immediately present side effects, [...]
Are Pharmaceutical Ad’s Downplaying Health Risks?
Are Pharmaceutical Ads Reliable? The Miami Herald (1/28, Tasker) reported that “one current TV pharmaceutical ad, for the plaque psoriasis drug Humira [adalimumab], shows visuals of a group of friends at a cabin on a pretty mountain lake while a voiceover warns of such possible side effects as cancer, liver damage and heart failure.” The FDA is [...]
Drug Shortages Are Putting Pharmaceutical Companies On The Hot Seat
Pharmaceutical Companies and Drug Shortages Drug shortages are putting pharmaceutical companies on the hot seat. The St. Paul Pioneer-Press (1/39, Snowbeck) reported, “Drug shortages are putting pharmaceutical companies on the hot seat. Last week, medical-products giant Johnson & Johnson assured shareholders that it is doing everything possible to resolve a shortage of a chemotherapy drug called Doxil [...]
Potentially Unsafe Medicines Were Made By Ranbaxy Laboratories Ltd
Ranbaxy Laboratories Lipitor Bloomberg News (1/26, Gale, Schoenberg) reports, BBC News (1/26) adds. “The legal proceedings do not affect the US sale of Ranbaxy’s generic version of the best-selling drug in the world, cholesterol” medications “Lipitor [atorvastatin].” Moreover, “the filing by the Justice Department on behalf of the FDA must be approved by a [...]
Pharmaceutical Companies Are Asking For Clearer Guidelines From The FDA
FDA Needs Clear Guidelines Pharmaceutical companies might stop developing treatments for diseases like diabetes or obesity if clearer guidelines are not given from the FDA said Christopher Viehbacher – chairman of the board of Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America. Pharmaceutical companies are having a difficult time predicting how the Food and Drug Administration weighs [...]
Faulty French breast implants may reverse US device approval debate.
FDA And Breast Implants Standards Jan 19. 2012 U.S. medical device makers have complained for years about slow reviews and inconsistent standards at the Food and Drug Administration They have spent the last year urging U.S. officials to approve high-risk products faster, like their European counterparts. A recent scandal over leaking breast implants made in [...]
FDA Warns J&J’s DePuy Orthopaedics About Custom Devices
Johnson & Johnson Pulls Medical Devices In a warning letter dated December 8th, federal health regulators warned Johnson & Johnson’s DePuy Orthopaedics unit that several of its hip, knee and joint replacements were improperly marketed. In response to the FDA’s warning, DePuy has decided to stop selling all if its custom fitted devices. In its [...]
New Study Says Hospital-Based Adverse Events Often Go Unreported
Hospital Reporting Does Not Include All Adverse Events A study released today by the Office of the Inspector General for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services suggests that approximately 86% of adverse events experienced by patients go unreported, never finding their way into the databases of incident reporting systems. The hospital administrators interviewed [...]
Excedrin, Bufferin, NoDoz & Gas-X Recalled
Drugmaker, Novartis, has issued a voluntary recall of 1,645 lots of Excedrin, NoDoz, Bufferin and Gas-X Prevention, over concerns that some of the bottles may contain stray prescription pain killers, as well as broken or chipped pills. The Novartis recall affects all Bufferin and Gas-X Prevention products with expiration dates of December 20, 2013 or [...]