FDA reviewer says five drugs now on market are so worrisome they deserve a

[RamboLiberal]

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/news/archive/2004/11/18/national1734EST0677.DTL

At least five medications now sold to consumers pose such risks that their sale should be limited or stopped, said a government drug reviewer who raised safety questions earlier about the arthritis drug Vioxx.

<snip>

* Meridia, a weight-loss drug. He said the agency should consider whether its benefits outweigh the risks of higher blood pressure and stroke among people taking it. "I don't think Meridia passes that test," Graham said.

* Crestor, an anti-cholesterol drug. He said the government should evaluate the occurrence of renal failure and other serious side effects among people taking Crestor. Two of three other statin competitors prevent heart attack and stroke and do not cause renal failure, he said.

* Accutane, an acne drug linked to birth defects. Graham said the drug represents a 20-year "regulatory failure" by the FDA and sales should be restricted immediately.

* Bextra, a painkiller. Graham said the drug poses the same heart attack and stroke risk as Vioxx. He recommended designing studies to look at the drug's cardiovascular risks.

* Serevent, an asthma treatment. He said the drug was shown, with 90 percent certainty in a long-term trial in England, to cause deaths due to asthma. GlaxoSmithKline, told by the FDA to do a large, clinical trial, begged off. "We've got case reports of people dying, clutching their Serevent inhaler," Graham said. "But Serevent is still on the market."

[Warpy]

1. Bextra has been withdrawn

supposedly for "severe and life threatening skin reactions."

[AllyCat]

2. Accutane causes birth defects,

...but as long as it doesn't cause spontaneous abortion, I'm sure God will approve.

Serevent so people can live with their newly-diagnosed asthma when Shrub's environmental policies spew more filth into the air. Meridien so we can eat more food cheaper (consume!!!! ) and then live to tell about it with this happy little pill.

God I hate drugs. I'm starting to think the legal ones are the worst kind!

[arikara]

3. And then there's the ones that they put in people's food

like aspartame. Rummy's baby.

[joanski01]

4. I am so sick and tired of being lied to

by this administration. I watched part of the above hearings and I am convinced that the FDA is in the pockets of the drug companies. Poor Dr. Graham will probably be fired for telling us the truth. FDA is already working to discredit him.

[Moderator]

5. Duplicate

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x1003905