Now all over the news:
Feb. 27 (Bloomberg) — Unfavorable studies about the antipsychotic drug Seroquel were “buried” by AstraZeneca Plc, according to an internal e-mail unsealed as part of litigation over the medicine.
The drugmaker failed to publicize results of at least three clinical trials of Seroquel and engaged in “cherry picking” of data from one of those studies for use in a presentation, an AstraZeneca official said in a December 1999 e-mail unsealed yesterday under an agreement between the company and lawyers for patients. The company faces about 9,000 lawsuits claiming it failed to properly warn users that Seroquel can cause diabetes and other health problems. AstraZeneca fell 6.5 percent.
“The larger issue is how we face the outside world when they begin to criticize us for suppressing data,” John Tumas, an AstraZeneca publications manager, told colleagues in the e-mail.
More than 15,000 patients have sued AstraZeneca, claiming the company withheld information of a connection between diabetes and Seroquel use from doctors and patients. Many of the lawsuits also claim AstraZeneca promoted Seroquel, approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, for unapproved uses.
Furious Seasons, of course, is where to go for the fine analysis. Go here and here where there is info regarding AstraZeneca ordering sales reps to lie!!
While you’re visiting Furious Seasons please think seriously of donating to Philip Dawdy. Philip is a journalist and makes most of his living off his highly informative and important blog. I would not be here either had Philip not inspired me. He has had to threaten to scale back his blogging activities if we don’t come through. Please think of even a small donation. If only a small percentage of his regular readers gave him $10 he would go beyond his goal, but for some reason most of us are not coming through. Why is that? Please contribute and if you’re a mental health professional, especially a psychiatrist let that be known because Doug Bremner is doing an incentive for y’all.
Justice and civil cases both….these attorneys keep going after the harm caused – diabetes….
What about what happens to the brain itself?
These are not “antipsychotics”….
These are “neuroleptics”…..”tranquilizers”….
And the fallout from them are not “side effects”…..they are precisely what’s meant to take place….the glazed eyes, the shuffled walking….the zombie-like effect of these “meds”….It’s what they’re designed to do!!!!!!!!!!
They shut down the higher functioning of the brain – plain and simple….
Veternarians won’t use a tranquilizer for more than a few days on a horse….Think of the size of one of those animals….out of humane treatment, vets won’t put these huge animals on them for long….
And yet, the “mentally ill” are told “comply”….
Comply with WHOM?
Comply with WHAT?
Comply with pharmaceutical companies that have made money….hand-over-fist….by falsifying documents, withholding data, not publishing more than half of their clinical work (on some drugs), giving only their best clinical findings to the FDA….and then, fighting to keep off black-box warnings….selling their poisons “off-label” to kids and seniors….Injuring people….taking (additional years) off their average lifespan (bringing the total to 25 years less)….and then, working with “non-profit” groups such as NAMI to market them….Persuading families to “keep Uncle Joe on his meds”….muscling their way into the finest universities in our country, and paying research chairs off….paying off both houses of Congress….both aisles….corrupting the medical profession, by training 22 year-old marketing grads how to sell drugs to doctors who have been through medical school, and don’t have time to read much….relying on these young recent college grads to tell them the truth about these drugs….
As a result, we have almost become a drug-addicted nation…..on a boatload of mind-altering drugs…..Even our toddlers…..
All based upon a lie.
Jail time!
Duane
Duane
Yeah, being stuck on a gram of this stuff is fun. Yahoo.
Anyway, sign me up for the lawsuit. I am on the borderline for clincal obesity. So far, no metabolic syndrome, but I’m 47 and who knows how long my body will detox this stuff.
My only thing is that I am extremely psychologically addicted to it. I am in dread and fear of what would happen to my mind, if I stopped taking it. I fear uncontrolled anxiety attacks.
What are we going to use, if this gets pulled from the market?
I’m serious about the lawsuit. I need to go to rehab for this stuff, and I need to pay for a gym to lose my weight, if I even can. I would also join a lawsuit, if, for no other reason, I would be the first to hear any negative news. Then there’s the suffering that it’s caused.
I’m not only on a gram (1000mgs of this stuff) but my doctor told me to increase it to 1200mgs this winter, when I was having some SAD related anxiety. Thank God I didn’t do that.
Best,
Ari
yeah, that’s not uncommon either…
the thing is a lot of ADULT onset diabetes is reversible…with diet and exercise…but certainly NOT if you’re on a neuroleptic…
no one who is already diabetic should ever be put on these drugs…
well, I’d argue no one should ever be put on these drugs for maintenance of anything ever…
I was already diabetic when I was put on Risperdal. It’s made my diabetes much much worse.
well…that’s not been a secret for well over a decade..ALL neuroleptics (the atypicals, that is) can cause diabetes!!
I knew that as a social worker in mental health a very very long time ago.
the problem is most people are not routinely told, though I’ve said so many many times on this blog and so has Philip on his blog.
WOW – causes diabetes! 🙁 🙁 Not good at all.