Overall, antipsychotic medications are reasonably effective, and fairly well tolerated treatments for mood and psychotic disorders. However, treatment with a number of antipsychotic medications is associated with weight gain, and for some, hyperglycemia and hyperlipidemia. In the current issue of Biological Psychiatry, published by Elsevier, researchers discuss this cluster of metabolic side effects and how it may contribute to the risk for diabetes, hypertension, and other medical disorders associated with heart disease. This is of particular concern because there is a higher cardiovascular mortality among the severely mentally ill compared to the general population.
Researchers already know that differences exist between antipsychotics in their effect on clinical measures associated with cardiovascular risk, namely weight, lipids and glucose. Systemic inflammation has recently emerged as an important marker of cardiovascular risk, but the effects of antipsychotics on inflammatory markers in the blood have not been extensively studied until now.
READ MORE @ SCIENCE DAILY
Thursday, December 3, 2009
Wednesday, December 2, 2009
The Doctors Were Real, the Patients Undercover
It had all the markings of a television detective show. Posing as patients, three undercover observers got themselves admitted as patients to a locked psychiatric ward to investigate conditions on the inside.
Each undercover patient had rehearsed an extensive back story, and the supposed family members who visited them were professional actors. A remote team monitored the project via hidden cameras and microphones from a command center in a nearby hotel.
The project, which took place this spring in De Gelderse Roos, a psychiatric complex about 40 miles from Amsterdam, was not a sting operation. The staff was told there would be mystery shoppers, of a sort, in the facility over a couple of months.
“We didn’t go in there like cowboys,” said Menko Soeters, a partner at Clearfields, a consulting firm that developed the project with De Gelderse Roos. “But we did use an unorthodox instrument for psychiatric care.”
Surrounded by manicured greenery, the closed-off ward of the complex, known as De Riethorst, recalls a suburban dental clinic, and its sunny gymnasium and carpeted hallways do little to suggest that it houses up to a dozen acute psychiatric patients, many of whom are there involuntarily.
And that is why the undercover participants were all experienced psychiatric nurses. “You couldn’t have done it otherwise,” said Edo De Vries, the director of De Gelderse Roos, which released the results of the project last summer.
READ MORE @ NY TIMES
Each undercover patient had rehearsed an extensive back story, and the supposed family members who visited them were professional actors. A remote team monitored the project via hidden cameras and microphones from a command center in a nearby hotel.
The project, which took place this spring in De Gelderse Roos, a psychiatric complex about 40 miles from Amsterdam, was not a sting operation. The staff was told there would be mystery shoppers, of a sort, in the facility over a couple of months.
“We didn’t go in there like cowboys,” said Menko Soeters, a partner at Clearfields, a consulting firm that developed the project with De Gelderse Roos. “But we did use an unorthodox instrument for psychiatric care.”
Surrounded by manicured greenery, the closed-off ward of the complex, known as De Riethorst, recalls a suburban dental clinic, and its sunny gymnasium and carpeted hallways do little to suggest that it houses up to a dozen acute psychiatric patients, many of whom are there involuntarily.
And that is why the undercover participants were all experienced psychiatric nurses. “You couldn’t have done it otherwise,” said Edo De Vries, the director of De Gelderse Roos, which released the results of the project last summer.
READ MORE @ NY TIMES
Tuesday, December 1, 2009
Antidepressants can be helpful but risky
Feelings of unhappiness, decreased energy, insomnia and irritability are all symptoms of depression. And antidepressants can help relieve depression.
But for some people, these drugs may also have dangerous or troubling side effects -- drowsiness, feelings of panic, nervousness, sexual problems, thoughts of suicide or weight gain -- and should be taken only by people who really need them. So it's alarming that a new study shows antidepressant use has nearly doubled in the United States since the mid-1990s.
In the study, published in the August issue of Archives of General Psychiatry, researchers analyzed data from a national survey of antidepressant use conducted in 1996 and again in 2005. The survey included people age 6 and older.
Between 1996 and 2005, the rate of those reporting that they had used antidepressants in the past year jumped from 5.8 percent to 10.1 percent. This translates to an increase from about 13.3 million people to 27 million. The change was more dramatic among whites than African Americans or Hispanics.
READ MORE @ WASHINGTON POST
But for some people, these drugs may also have dangerous or troubling side effects -- drowsiness, feelings of panic, nervousness, sexual problems, thoughts of suicide or weight gain -- and should be taken only by people who really need them. So it's alarming that a new study shows antidepressant use has nearly doubled in the United States since the mid-1990s.
In the study, published in the August issue of Archives of General Psychiatry, researchers analyzed data from a national survey of antidepressant use conducted in 1996 and again in 2005. The survey included people age 6 and older.
Between 1996 and 2005, the rate of those reporting that they had used antidepressants in the past year jumped from 5.8 percent to 10.1 percent. This translates to an increase from about 13.3 million people to 27 million. The change was more dramatic among whites than African Americans or Hispanics.
READ MORE @ WASHINGTON POST
Monday, November 30, 2009
Should Drug Companies Carry Out Their Own Clinical Trials?
Two experts question on bmj.com today whether the conflict of interest is unethical when drug companies perform clinical trials on their own medicines.
Their opinions come as new guidance on the obligatory standards for communicating company sponsored medical research.
Vincent Lawton is a healthcare consultant and non-executive director at the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency in London. He argues that after having invested billions of pounds in medicine development, it is unrealistic to expect the drug industry to "surrender its intellectual property." He comments that withdrawing research from pharmaceutical companies will lead to delays, ineffectiveness and a deficiency in innovation.
MEDICAL NEWS TODAY
Their opinions come as new guidance on the obligatory standards for communicating company sponsored medical research.
Vincent Lawton is a healthcare consultant and non-executive director at the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency in London. He argues that after having invested billions of pounds in medicine development, it is unrealistic to expect the drug industry to "surrender its intellectual property." He comments that withdrawing research from pharmaceutical companies will lead to delays, ineffectiveness and a deficiency in innovation.
MEDICAL NEWS TODAY
Sunday, November 29, 2009
Patient advocates ill at ease with Rx data mining Patient advocates see sales tactic as medical meddling
When your doctor writes you a prescription, that's just between you, your doctor and maybe your health insurance company, right?
Wrong. The pharmaceutical companies that make those prescription drugs are also looking over the doctor's shoulder, keeping track of how many prescriptions for which drugs the physician is writing.
And that data on the prescribing habits of thousands of doctors has become a powerful sales and marketing tool for the pharmaceutical industry, but also a source of growing concern among some elected officials, health care advocates and legal authorities.
The identity of patients is not disclosed, but knowing in detail what doctors are prescribing enables drugmakers to fine-tune their messages when sales reps call on doctors. They can lobby for use of an alternative drug made by their own company, for instance, bolstering the pitch with specially selected research data or free samples.
What worries some government officials and patient advocates is that sales tactics keyed to a doctor's prescribing preferences may distort decision-making. That's especially likely, the critics say, when many doctors have trouble finding time to examine a plethora of studies and weigh the results carefully. And, given the concern over costs, they say, free samples or other inducements could influence decisions for nonmedical reasons.
The practice is known as "prescription data mining." Medical data firms annually blend several billion prescription records -- purchased from pharmacies and health insurers -- with physician data from the American Medical Association and other sources and sell the results to drug companies.
READ MORE @ CHICAGO TRIBUNE
Wrong. The pharmaceutical companies that make those prescription drugs are also looking over the doctor's shoulder, keeping track of how many prescriptions for which drugs the physician is writing.
And that data on the prescribing habits of thousands of doctors has become a powerful sales and marketing tool for the pharmaceutical industry, but also a source of growing concern among some elected officials, health care advocates and legal authorities.
The identity of patients is not disclosed, but knowing in detail what doctors are prescribing enables drugmakers to fine-tune their messages when sales reps call on doctors. They can lobby for use of an alternative drug made by their own company, for instance, bolstering the pitch with specially selected research data or free samples.
What worries some government officials and patient advocates is that sales tactics keyed to a doctor's prescribing preferences may distort decision-making. That's especially likely, the critics say, when many doctors have trouble finding time to examine a plethora of studies and weigh the results carefully. And, given the concern over costs, they say, free samples or other inducements could influence decisions for nonmedical reasons.
The practice is known as "prescription data mining." Medical data firms annually blend several billion prescription records -- purchased from pharmacies and health insurers -- with physician data from the American Medical Association and other sources and sell the results to drug companies.
READ MORE @ CHICAGO TRIBUNE
Friday, November 27, 2009
Focus on Pharmacotherapy Studies in Elderly
The NIMH-sponsored New Clinical Drugs Evaluation Unit (NCDEU) meeting is a favored venue for reports and reviews of NIH-funded psychopharmacological studies, and this was true of the recent annual meeting in Hollywood, Fla. The meeting included a workshop on new investigations of antidepressant use in Alzheimer disease and a panel session on the safety of pharmacotherapy in older adults.
Two studies were developed, in part, in response to growing concern about both safety and lack of efficacy of antipsychotics for behavior symptoms in patients with dementia. These were the Depression in Alzheimer’s Disease Study–2 (DIADS-2) sertraline (Zoloft) trial, the citalopram (Celexa) versus antipsychotics nested study in the Clinical Antipsychotic Trials of Intervention Effectiveness–Alzheimer’s Disease (CATIE-AD), and the recently initiated Citalopram for Agitation in Alzheimer’s Disease (CITAD).
In describing the rationale and design of the CITAD study, Bruce Pollock, MD, Center for Addiction and Mental Health, questioned the premise for using antipsychotics in this population. “The neuropharmacologic rationale for using dopamine antagonists in elders with dopaminergic deficits is questionable,” Pollock indicated. “Agitation in Alzheimer disease is commonly derived from anxious, impulsive, and compulsive symptoms, which may be responsive to serotonergic agents.”
READ MORE @ PSYCHIATRIC TIMES
Two studies were developed, in part, in response to growing concern about both safety and lack of efficacy of antipsychotics for behavior symptoms in patients with dementia. These were the Depression in Alzheimer’s Disease Study–2 (DIADS-2) sertraline (Zoloft) trial, the citalopram (Celexa) versus antipsychotics nested study in the Clinical Antipsychotic Trials of Intervention Effectiveness–Alzheimer’s Disease (CATIE-AD), and the recently initiated Citalopram for Agitation in Alzheimer’s Disease (CITAD).
In describing the rationale and design of the CITAD study, Bruce Pollock, MD, Center for Addiction and Mental Health, questioned the premise for using antipsychotics in this population. “The neuropharmacologic rationale for using dopamine antagonists in elders with dopaminergic deficits is questionable,” Pollock indicated. “Agitation in Alzheimer disease is commonly derived from anxious, impulsive, and compulsive symptoms, which may be responsive to serotonergic agents.”
READ MORE @ PSYCHIATRIC TIMES
Thursday, November 26, 2009
'Doctors should stop pushing drugs at depressed people'
Despite a large increase in cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT) doctors are still pushing drugs at patients, according to Dr Jennifer Wild, a senior lecturer at the Institute of Psychiatry.
In this week's Scrubbing Up, she argues that GPs need to understand that psychological therapies like CBT work and should choose to offer them.
People with depression often get better when they change the way they think.
Since therapy is more likely to achieve this with longer-lasting results than drugs, doctors need to stop pushing pills and start pushing treatments that work.
Depressed people feel low, worthless, and often suicidal. They need treatment.
Six million people suffer from depression and anxiety in the UK, and surveys show that most do not want to take drugs.
They want a treatment with long-lasting results.
READ MORE @ BBC NEWS"
'Distorted thinking'
This treatment is cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT).
CBT is based on a well-supported theory of how depression starts and what keeps it going: distorted thinking patterns.
Change people's thoughts and recovery occurs.
In this week's Scrubbing Up, she argues that GPs need to understand that psychological therapies like CBT work and should choose to offer them.
People with depression often get better when they change the way they think.
Since therapy is more likely to achieve this with longer-lasting results than drugs, doctors need to stop pushing pills and start pushing treatments that work.
Depressed people feel low, worthless, and often suicidal. They need treatment.
Six million people suffer from depression and anxiety in the UK, and surveys show that most do not want to take drugs.
They want a treatment with long-lasting results.
READ MORE @ BBC NEWS"
'Distorted thinking'
This treatment is cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT).
CBT is based on a well-supported theory of how depression starts and what keeps it going: distorted thinking patterns.
Change people's thoughts and recovery occurs.
Wednesday, November 25, 2009
Ziprasidone Okayed for Bipolar Disorder
The FDA has cleared ziprasidone (Geodon) for maintenance treatment of bipolar I disorder as an adjunct to lithium or valproate.
It joins several other antipsychotic drugs -- including quetiapine (Seroquel), aripiprazole (Abilify), and olanzapine (Zyprexa) -- approved for this indication.
Ziprasidone is also approved for acute manic and mixed episodes associated with bipolar disorder, with or without psychotic features, and for schizophrenia.
The approval as bipolar maintenance therapy follows a a six-month, double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled trial in adult patients with bipolar I disorder, according to the drug's manufacturer, Pfizer.
READ MORE @ MEDPAGE TODAY
It joins several other antipsychotic drugs -- including quetiapine (Seroquel), aripiprazole (Abilify), and olanzapine (Zyprexa) -- approved for this indication.
Ziprasidone is also approved for acute manic and mixed episodes associated with bipolar disorder, with or without psychotic features, and for schizophrenia.
The approval as bipolar maintenance therapy follows a a six-month, double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled trial in adult patients with bipolar I disorder, according to the drug's manufacturer, Pfizer.
READ MORE @ MEDPAGE TODAY
Tuesday, November 24, 2009
Psychiatrist Helped Demonstrate Psychotherapy Is Cost-Effective
Whether psychotherapy is cost-effective was an important question during President Clinton's health care reform effort. Lessons from that era remain relevant during current health reform debates.
If psychotherapy has a place in the American health care system of tomorrow, give some credit to psychiatrist Susan Lazar, M.D., and other clinician-researchers who helped establish the evidence base for the cost-effectiveness of psychotherapy beginning more than 16 years ago.
That was when Hillary Rodham Clinton's Health Care Task Force was at work. Though the exact content of health insurance benefit packages hasn't yet been a focus of today's health care debates, a decade and a half ago task force members were weighing the relative value of any health care service as a criterion for inclusion in mandated benefits.
And “value” meant cost-effectiveness—the cost of providing the service compared with the benefits derived from the service.
READ MORE @ PSYCHIATRIC NEWS
If psychotherapy has a place in the American health care system of tomorrow, give some credit to psychiatrist Susan Lazar, M.D., and other clinician-researchers who helped establish the evidence base for the cost-effectiveness of psychotherapy beginning more than 16 years ago.
That was when Hillary Rodham Clinton's Health Care Task Force was at work. Though the exact content of health insurance benefit packages hasn't yet been a focus of today's health care debates, a decade and a half ago task force members were weighing the relative value of any health care service as a criterion for inclusion in mandated benefits.
And “value” meant cost-effectiveness—the cost of providing the service compared with the benefits derived from the service.
READ MORE @ PSYCHIATRIC NEWS
Monday, November 23, 2009
Psychotropic Drugs Boost Fall Risk in the Elderly
A new analysis of studies including nearly 80,000 people aged 60 and older confirms that certain types of widely prescribed drugs, such as antidepressants and sedatives, can increase their risk of falling.
Falls often have serious consequences for older people, such as injuries leading to disability and admission to a nursing home, or even death.
While prescription drugs are recognized as contributing to fall risk among older people --who are likely to be on lots of medications -- discovering just which drugs are the problem is still a "challenge," Dr. Carlo A. Marra of the University of British Columbia in Vancouver and colleagues note in the Archives of Internal Medicine.
To update a review of studies on this subject published in 1996, Marra and his team identified 22 studies published between 1996 and 2007 including 79,081 people 60 and older, some of whom lived independently, and some of whom were institutionalized. They analyzed the risk of falling associated with nine classes of drugs.
Three classes turned out to significantly boost fall risk: sedatives and hypnotics, typically prescribed as sleeping aids; antidepressants; and benzodiazepines, which include tranquilizers like Xanax and Valium.
READ MORE @ ABC NEWS
Falls often have serious consequences for older people, such as injuries leading to disability and admission to a nursing home, or even death.
While prescription drugs are recognized as contributing to fall risk among older people --who are likely to be on lots of medications -- discovering just which drugs are the problem is still a "challenge," Dr. Carlo A. Marra of the University of British Columbia in Vancouver and colleagues note in the Archives of Internal Medicine.
To update a review of studies on this subject published in 1996, Marra and his team identified 22 studies published between 1996 and 2007 including 79,081 people 60 and older, some of whom lived independently, and some of whom were institutionalized. They analyzed the risk of falling associated with nine classes of drugs.
Three classes turned out to significantly boost fall risk: sedatives and hypnotics, typically prescribed as sleeping aids; antidepressants; and benzodiazepines, which include tranquilizers like Xanax and Valium.
READ MORE @ ABC NEWS
Sunday, November 22, 2009
The stigma of mental illness The suicides of a German footballer and two of my colleagues show how destructive is the stigma of psychiatric ill-health
Last week's suicide of the German goalkeeper Robert Enke revealed more than the terrible news of one man's death, the cruelty of depression and the pressures on sportsmen to protect the public's idealised view of them; it also exposed the ongoing shame and stigma of mental illness. For years he had been struggling with depression, kept secret from the public and his colleagues for fear of a vicious backlash that could, he apparently feared, raise questions about his capacity to care for his adopted baby girl and play for his nation.
Rather than risk this, and perhaps further despairing under the force of these private terrors, he chose the solution of death. That this seemed preferable to risking public awareness of his depression and the imagined consequences of personal shame, family destruction and exclusion from his nation's crucial sporting event, demonstrates something of the huge level of hatred that mental illness still evokes in the public imagination. The stigma only worsens the burden on those with mental health problems, typically reported as one in four of the adult population in the UK.
When people die by their own hand, a response of shocked disbelief, of the sense of an awful secret that has been starkly exposed, occurs all too often. How is it in this advanced age of emotional literacy, psychological self-help and media shrinks that the shame of depression and other mental illness causes people to desperately try to hide their problems rather than challenge society to accept that they, like so many others, are vulnerable?
READ MORE @ THE GUARDIAN
Rather than risk this, and perhaps further despairing under the force of these private terrors, he chose the solution of death. That this seemed preferable to risking public awareness of his depression and the imagined consequences of personal shame, family destruction and exclusion from his nation's crucial sporting event, demonstrates something of the huge level of hatred that mental illness still evokes in the public imagination. The stigma only worsens the burden on those with mental health problems, typically reported as one in four of the adult population in the UK.
When people die by their own hand, a response of shocked disbelief, of the sense of an awful secret that has been starkly exposed, occurs all too often. How is it in this advanced age of emotional literacy, psychological self-help and media shrinks that the shame of depression and other mental illness causes people to desperately try to hide their problems rather than challenge society to accept that they, like so many others, are vulnerable?
READ MORE @ THE GUARDIAN
Saturday, November 21, 2009
Healthcare lobby set for record spending this year
It's not just spending on U.S. healthcare that is breaking records. Drugmakers, insurers and industry groups are on track to spend an all-time high of more than $500 million this year to influence Congress' revamp of the healthcare system.
Lobbyists for the healthcare sector will likely smash previous spending records by tens of millions of dollars this year as Democratic lawmakers try to reshape the industry by expanding coverage and shaving costs.
"If current trends continue, the health sector is likely to spend more than a half-billion dollars on lobbying in 2009," said The New England Journal of Medicine's Dr. Robert Steinbrook.
As Congress makes a final push for a bill to overhaul the $2.5 trillion healthcare system that fuels one-sixth of the U.S. economy, health companies and industry groups are trying to shape the outcome.
READ MORE @ REUTERS
Lobbyists for the healthcare sector will likely smash previous spending records by tens of millions of dollars this year as Democratic lawmakers try to reshape the industry by expanding coverage and shaving costs.
"If current trends continue, the health sector is likely to spend more than a half-billion dollars on lobbying in 2009," said The New England Journal of Medicine's Dr. Robert Steinbrook.
As Congress makes a final push for a bill to overhaul the $2.5 trillion healthcare system that fuels one-sixth of the U.S. economy, health companies and industry groups are trying to shape the outcome.
READ MORE @ REUTERS
Friday, November 20, 2009
Rising Prices of Drugs Lead to Call for Inquiry
Democrats in Congress asked for two separate investigations of drug industry pricing Wednesday as they continue working on legislation to overhaul the nation’s health care system.
Responding to news reports of unusually high wholesale price increases in brand-name prescription drugs, four House leaders and one senator asked for government reviews of the pricing practices.
Although drug makers challenge the theory, some experts say the run-up in wholesale prices may be partly related to the industry’s concerns about future cost containment under any health care legislation.
“Recent studies have indicated that the industry may be artificially raising prices for certain pharmaceutical products in expectation of new reforms,” the House Democrats wrote in a letter to the Government Accountability Office, a nonpartisan investigative arm of Congress. “Any price gouging is unacceptable, but anticipatory price gouging is especially offensive,” the letter added, asking the G.A.O. to conduct an expedited review of the price increases.
READ MORE @ NY TIMES
Responding to news reports of unusually high wholesale price increases in brand-name prescription drugs, four House leaders and one senator asked for government reviews of the pricing practices.
Although drug makers challenge the theory, some experts say the run-up in wholesale prices may be partly related to the industry’s concerns about future cost containment under any health care legislation.
“Recent studies have indicated that the industry may be artificially raising prices for certain pharmaceutical products in expectation of new reforms,” the House Democrats wrote in a letter to the Government Accountability Office, a nonpartisan investigative arm of Congress. “Any price gouging is unacceptable, but anticipatory price gouging is especially offensive,” the letter added, asking the G.A.O. to conduct an expedited review of the price increases.
READ MORE @ NY TIMES
Thursday, November 19, 2009
US Army suicides on track to hit new high in 2009
US Army is short on mental health professionals as it tries to stem rising number of Army suicides.
The US Army is short as many as 300 substance-abuse counselors and 800 mental health professionals as it attempts to stem the rise of soldier suicides, which is expected to break new records again this year.
As of Monday, there were 140 confirmed suicides in 2009 among the active-duty Army and another 71 from the Reserve and National Guard, said Army Gen. Pete Chiarelli, the service's vice-chief of staff. This year will probably be worse than last year, in which 140 suicides were confirmed, he said. That would represent the fifth straight year suicides increased in the Army.
"This is horrible, and I do not want to downplay the significance of this in any way," said Chiarelli, noting that the rising number of suicides is probably the "toughest challenge" he's ever had to tackle.
The Marine Corps is seeing a similar trend: Last year it confirmed 42 suicides and has counted 42 already this year.
Too few mental health experts are available to address the problem – reflecting a shortage of such experts across the country, not just in the military.
READ MORE @ CHRISTIAN SCIENCE MONITOR
The US Army is short as many as 300 substance-abuse counselors and 800 mental health professionals as it attempts to stem the rise of soldier suicides, which is expected to break new records again this year.
As of Monday, there were 140 confirmed suicides in 2009 among the active-duty Army and another 71 from the Reserve and National Guard, said Army Gen. Pete Chiarelli, the service's vice-chief of staff. This year will probably be worse than last year, in which 140 suicides were confirmed, he said. That would represent the fifth straight year suicides increased in the Army.
"This is horrible, and I do not want to downplay the significance of this in any way," said Chiarelli, noting that the rising number of suicides is probably the "toughest challenge" he's ever had to tackle.
The Marine Corps is seeing a similar trend: Last year it confirmed 42 suicides and has counted 42 already this year.
Too few mental health experts are available to address the problem – reflecting a shortage of such experts across the country, not just in the military.
READ MORE @ CHRISTIAN SCIENCE MONITOR
Wednesday, November 18, 2009
Drug ads get scrutiny from the FDA
When patients are diagnosed with an illness, the Web is fast becoming the first place they look for information, treatment options and support groups.
Drug companies want to be part of that conversation. But they are wary of advertising online because of the Food and Drug Adminstration's vague rules about ad content and disclaimer information for Internet marketing. Afraid of violating those rules, most pharmaceutical makers have shied away from advertising specific products online, instead relying on traditional media such as TV and print ads, for which there are strict guidelines.
The online advertising industry says the lack of clarity around the rules is costing millions in potential ad revenue and is actually resulting in less information getting to consumers.
The FDA is hosting a two-day workshop, which concludes today, to discuss how drug companies should be allowed to advertise on Web sites, search engines and social media sites. (The Wall Street Journal and NPR both wrote stories on the workshop.)
READ MORE @ THE HILL
Drug companies want to be part of that conversation. But they are wary of advertising online because of the Food and Drug Adminstration's vague rules about ad content and disclaimer information for Internet marketing. Afraid of violating those rules, most pharmaceutical makers have shied away from advertising specific products online, instead relying on traditional media such as TV and print ads, for which there are strict guidelines.
The online advertising industry says the lack of clarity around the rules is costing millions in potential ad revenue and is actually resulting in less information getting to consumers.
The FDA is hosting a two-day workshop, which concludes today, to discuss how drug companies should be allowed to advertise on Web sites, search engines and social media sites. (The Wall Street Journal and NPR both wrote stories on the workshop.)
READ MORE @ THE HILL
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
Medical Schools Quizzed on Ghostwriting
Senator Charles E. Grassley wrote to 10 top medical schools Tuesday to ask what they are doing about professors who put their names on ghostwritten articles in medical journals — and why that practice was any different from plagiarism by students.
Mr. Grassley, of Iowa, the ranking Republican on the Senate Finance Committee, sent the letters as part of his continuing investigation of so-called medical ghostwriting. The term refers to publication of medical journal articles in which an outside writer — sometimes paid by a drug or medical devices company whose product is being studied — has done extensive work on the article without being named on the publication. Instead, one or more academic researchers may receive author credit.
Mr. Grassley said ghostwriting had hurt patients and raised costs for taxpayers because it used prestigious academic names to promote medical products and treatments that might be expensive or less effective than viable alternatives.
Va href="http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/18/business/18ghost.html?_r=1&ref=health">READ MORE @ NY TIMES
Mr. Grassley, of Iowa, the ranking Republican on the Senate Finance Committee, sent the letters as part of his continuing investigation of so-called medical ghostwriting. The term refers to publication of medical journal articles in which an outside writer — sometimes paid by a drug or medical devices company whose product is being studied — has done extensive work on the article without being named on the publication. Instead, one or more academic researchers may receive author credit.
Mr. Grassley said ghostwriting had hurt patients and raised costs for taxpayers because it used prestigious academic names to promote medical products and treatments that might be expensive or less effective than viable alternatives.
Va href="http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/18/business/18ghost.html?_r=1&ref=health">READ MORE @ NY TIMES
Sunday, November 15, 2009
New Treatment for Autism 'Holds Promise'
A new treatment for autism appears to normalize brain function, according to Nashville physician Fred S. Starr, MD, FAACAP, BCIA-EEG.
In addition to high serotonin levels, autistic children have a characteristically common "u" EEG pattern reflecting impaired brain function, particularly in areas of the brain responsible for social interaction, communication, speech and bonding.
However, Quantitative EEG's conducted by Dr. Starr on autistic children after three weeks on the medication Respen-A showed that the children's brain patterning changed to "normal" patterning. Starr says that behavioral improvement was also "evident". "Speech, interaction and social skills improved markedly in patients using Respen-A, and displays of frustration and anger markedly diminished," Starr said.
The theory behind the use of Respen-A was developed by private researcher Elaine DeLack, Stanwood, WA. Unlike theories that center on negative reaction to vaccinations, DeLack looked at exposure to a commonly used drug used during delivery, and at brain enzymes that affect the brain both at birth, and again as the child enters childhood.
READ MORE @ EARTHTIMES
In addition to high serotonin levels, autistic children have a characteristically common "u" EEG pattern reflecting impaired brain function, particularly in areas of the brain responsible for social interaction, communication, speech and bonding.
However, Quantitative EEG's conducted by Dr. Starr on autistic children after three weeks on the medication Respen-A showed that the children's brain patterning changed to "normal" patterning. Starr says that behavioral improvement was also "evident". "Speech, interaction and social skills improved markedly in patients using Respen-A, and displays of frustration and anger markedly diminished," Starr said.
The theory behind the use of Respen-A was developed by private researcher Elaine DeLack, Stanwood, WA. Unlike theories that center on negative reaction to vaccinations, DeLack looked at exposure to a commonly used drug used during delivery, and at brain enzymes that affect the brain both at birth, and again as the child enters childhood.
READ MORE @ EARTHTIMES
Saturday, November 14, 2009
UK study warns against anti-psychotics for dementia
* Most dementia patients given anti-psychotics needlessly
* Report could inform clinical practice around the world
* Global dementia cases seen doubling to 66 mln by 2030
More than 140,000 dementia patients in Britain are given anti-psychotic drugs needlessly and overprescribing of the medicines is linked to an extra 1,800 deaths in elderly people each year, a report said on Thursday.
The government-backed review showed that only around 36,000 of around 180,000 dementia patients prescribed anti-psychotics got any benefit from them -- findings it said could affect clinical practice in dementia across the world.
"Anti-psychotics are used too often in dementia," Sube Banerjee, the report's author and a professor of mental health and ageing at the Institute of Psychiatry at King's College London, said in a statement.
He said use of anti-psychotics drugs for dementia should be cut to a third of current levels in Britain and said his study would "provide international leadership in this complex clinical area."
Alzheimer's Disease International predicted in September that more than 35 million people around the world will suffer from dementia in 2010. That number is expected to almost double every 20 years, to 66 million in 2030 and more than 115 million in 2050. [ID:nN20262573]
READ MORE @ REUTERS
* Report could inform clinical practice around the world
* Global dementia cases seen doubling to 66 mln by 2030
More than 140,000 dementia patients in Britain are given anti-psychotic drugs needlessly and overprescribing of the medicines is linked to an extra 1,800 deaths in elderly people each year, a report said on Thursday.
The government-backed review showed that only around 36,000 of around 180,000 dementia patients prescribed anti-psychotics got any benefit from them -- findings it said could affect clinical practice in dementia across the world.
"Anti-psychotics are used too often in dementia," Sube Banerjee, the report's author and a professor of mental health and ageing at the Institute of Psychiatry at King's College London, said in a statement.
He said use of anti-psychotics drugs for dementia should be cut to a third of current levels in Britain and said his study would "provide international leadership in this complex clinical area."
Alzheimer's Disease International predicted in September that more than 35 million people around the world will suffer from dementia in 2010. That number is expected to almost double every 20 years, to 66 million in 2030 and more than 115 million in 2050. [ID:nN20262573]
READ MORE @ REUTERS
Friday, November 13, 2009
Web-based counseling service Vets Prevail offered to veterans
Veterans in need of counseling, support or information to deal with mental and emotional issues can now turn to an online, interactive program called Vets Prevail. The services are provided confidentially and free of charge.
The website allows veterans to connect with other vets through forums, blogs and multimedia content. Vets can also sign up for a six-week online mental health program tool designed to help them build resilience and readjust to life after deployment. The aim of the training is to help vets tackle negative emotions and keep the trauma of the battlefield from affecting daily life and relationships.
About 500 veterans will be able to access the training program based on funds provided by Major League Baseball and the McCormick Foundation. However, organizers aim to continue the service with additional funding.
READ MORE @ LS ANGELES TIMES
The website allows veterans to connect with other vets through forums, blogs and multimedia content. Vets can also sign up for a six-week online mental health program tool designed to help them build resilience and readjust to life after deployment. The aim of the training is to help vets tackle negative emotions and keep the trauma of the battlefield from affecting daily life and relationships.
About 500 veterans will be able to access the training program based on funds provided by Major League Baseball and the McCormick Foundation. However, organizers aim to continue the service with additional funding.
READ MORE @ LS ANGELES TIMES
Thursday, November 12, 2009
Drugmaker Paid Psychiatrist Nearly $500,000 to Promote Antipsychotic, Despite Doubts About Research
This story was co-published with the Chicago Tribune.
Executives inside pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca faced a high-stakes dilemma.
On one hand, Chicago psychiatrist Dr. Michael Reinstein was bringing the company a small fortune in sales and was conducting research that made one of its most promising drugs look spectacular.
On the other, some worried that his research findings might be too good to be true.
As Reinstein grew irritated with what he perceived as the company's slights, a top executive outlined the scenario in an e-mail to colleague
"If he is in fact worth half a billion dollars to (AstraZeneca)," the company's U.S. sales chief wrote in 2001, "we need to put him in a different category." To avoid scaring Reinstein away, he said, the firm should answer "his every query and satisfy any of his quirky behaviors."
Putting aside its concerns, AstraZeneca would continue its relationship with Reinstein, paying him $490,000 over a decade to travel the nation promoting its best-selling antipsychotic drug, Seroquel. In return, Reinstein provided the company a vast customer base: thousands of indigent, mentally ill residents in Chicago-area nursing homes.
During this period, Reinstein also faced accusations that he overmedicated and neglected patients who took a variety of drugs. But his research and promotional work went on, including studies and presentations examining many of the antipsychotics he prescribed on his daily rounds.
READ MORE @ PRO PUBLICA
Executives inside pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca faced a high-stakes dilemma.
On one hand, Chicago psychiatrist Dr. Michael Reinstein was bringing the company a small fortune in sales and was conducting research that made one of its most promising drugs look spectacular.
On the other, some worried that his research findings might be too good to be true.
As Reinstein grew irritated with what he perceived as the company's slights, a top executive outlined the scenario in an e-mail to colleague
"If he is in fact worth half a billion dollars to (AstraZeneca)," the company's U.S. sales chief wrote in 2001, "we need to put him in a different category." To avoid scaring Reinstein away, he said, the firm should answer "his every query and satisfy any of his quirky behaviors."
Putting aside its concerns, AstraZeneca would continue its relationship with Reinstein, paying him $490,000 over a decade to travel the nation promoting its best-selling antipsychotic drug, Seroquel. In return, Reinstein provided the company a vast customer base: thousands of indigent, mentally ill residents in Chicago-area nursing homes.
During this period, Reinstein also faced accusations that he overmedicated and neglected patients who took a variety of drugs. But his research and promotional work went on, including studies and presentations examining many of the antipsychotics he prescribed on his daily rounds.
READ MORE @ PRO PUBLICA
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