Fwd: Drug Casualties Continue to Increase

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ALLIANCE FOR HUMAN RESEARCH PROTECTION A Catalyst for Public Debate: Promoting Openness, Full Disclosure, andAccountability http://www.ahrp.org FYIOne has to wonder why discovery of defective cars are front page news whiledefective FDA-approved prescription drugs are accepted as part of life'srisk.According to the database maintained by the National Highway SafetyAdministration there were 34 deaths alleged to be attributable to defectiveToyota cars (13 of those deaths occurred between 2005 and 2010). Toyota hasrecalled 8.5 million cars.Yet, defective FDA-approved drugs that kill thousands of people every week!The latest Quaterwatch report by the Institute for Safe MedicationPractices, that analyzing serious adverse events reported to the FDA'sMedwatch found that the number of consumers harmed and killed byFDA-approved prescription drugs keeps rising.http://www.ismp.org/QuarterWatch/2008Q2.pdf"In the third quarter of 2009 the steady increase continued in reportedserious, disabling and fatal adverse drug events. Cases meeting theQuarterWatch criteria totaled29,065 cases, an increase of 2,256 cases (8.4%) from the same quarter in theprevious year. For the first three quarters of 2009, combined case reportsincreased by 8.1% from the first three quarters of 2009."GlaxoSmithKline's diabetes drug, Avandia, and AstraZeneca's, antipsychotic,Seroquel, are the two worst drugs--if one considers the magnitude of harmproduced by these drugs, coupled with these drugs' controversial (at best)clinical value.According to Quaterwatch analysts, "Rosiglitazone (AVANDIA). More than 1000 reports of patient deaths werereceived forrosiglitazone in the first three quarters of 2009, more than any other drugwe monitor.Rosiglitazone is an oral medication for treating Type 2 or adult onsetdiabetes. Mostdeaths were attributed to cardiovascular causes, a problem for which the FDAhasrequired warnings. While these cases do not appear to signal previouslyundetected risksof rosiglitazone, the large number of reports alleging serious and fatalinjuries associatedwith rosiglitazone further reinforces concerns about its cardiovascularsafety. Thecompany, GlaxoSmithKline, told us it believed most reports were generated bylawsuits.In February 2010 the FDA announced it was conducting an overall safetyreview ofrosiglitazone and would present its findings to a special advisory committeemeeting in July.". Quetiapine (SEROQUEL, SEROQUEL XR). In the third quarter of 2009,quetiapine,a drug approved for several severe mental disorders, was the suspect drug inmorepossible cases of diabetes than all other drugs combined. AstraZeneca, whichmanufactures this best-selling antipsychotic drug, told us it believed mostof the diabetescases were related to lawsuits. The mandatory Medication Guide to warnpatients aboutthe risk of diabetes does not primarily use the word "diabetes" but ratherdescribes thedisorder as "high blood sugar (hyperglycemia)," potentially minimizing thisserious risk."The FDA has been shown to be complicit in its failure to act--despite amounting epidemic of drug-induced catastrophes.A mountain of evidence documents the harm these drugs have produced--andinternal documents confirm that manufacturers used corrupt practices tomarket these hazardous drugs.Healthcare overhaul must include a shift at the policy level: FDA's drugsafety policy must be geared twoard effectively reducing preventabledrug-induced deaths. Contact: Vera Hassner Sharavveracare212-595-8974_____________Infomail1 mailing listto send a message to Infomail1-leave =====In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes.