Antidepressants and Big Pharma
Posted by
Dan FrithJanuary 22, 2008 9:30 AMBig Pharma is at it again! Do you or a family member take a doctor prescribed antidepressant? We are talking about Zoloft, Serzone, Wellbutrin, Paxil, Effexor, Celexa, Lexapro, and Prozac among others. It appears the pharmaceutical industry has been misleading not only consumers but also the doctors who prescribe these drugs!
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has concluded that the effectiveness of these popular antidepressants has been exaggerated by the selective publication of favorable test data. The overwhelming amount of published data about these drugs show they are effective...but doctors are unaware of the unpublished data which paints a different picture.
A total of 74 studies involving antidepressants were registered with the FDA between 1987 and 2004. The FDA determined that 38 of those studies were positive about the effectiveness of the medications. All but one of these positive studies was published in various medical journals. The remaining 36 studies were found to have negative or questionable results - and guess what? The vast majority (22) of these studies were never published and never saw the light of day! For the 14 negative studies which were published...the FDA concluded that 11 of the 14 mischaracterized the study and presented the negative study as a positive.
There is no obligation for a pharmaceutical manufacturer to publish the results of all studies which it sponsors. However, how are the consuming public, and more importantly the prescribing doctor, going to know and understand the strengths and weaknesses of the highly marketed drugs without this information?
For more information on this subject, please refer to the section on Drugs, Medical Devices and Implants.