FDA & Prescription Drugs

• Can Cholesterol Drugs Cause Parkinson's?

  RLF Staff | January 16, 2007 6:48 AM | 0 CommentsDallas, TX

  A new study has suggested a connection between cholesterol-lowering drugs (statins) and an increased risk of Parkinson's disease. Researchers at the University of North Carolina found that patients with low levels of LDL cholesterol are upward of three and a half times more likely to develop Parkinson's disease than those with higher LDL levels. Their study was presented in Chemistry & Industry,...

• Parrkinson's Drugs Could Cause Valve Risk

  RLF Staff | January 12, 2007 6:47 AM | 0 CommentsDallas, TX

  About one in four patients taking pergolide or cabergoline show signs of heart-valve damage according to two studies.A U.S. official to call for a halt in the use of two drugs used for Parkinson's disease, pergolide and cabergoline due to an increased risk of heart-valve damage.Patients who took pergolide or cabergoline are four to seven times as likely to suffer heart-valve damage as patients...

• Tamiflu Might Receive New Labeling Due to Reported Deaths and "Bizarre Behavior"

  Robert Wolf | November 16, 2006 6:16 PM | 0 CommentsDallas, TX

  Uh-oh - it looks as though the makers of Tamiflu could have a potential controversy on their hands. Due to new reports of "bizarre" behavior and deaths related to falls and other similar behavior, new warnings may be placed on Tamiflu labels. Doctors and parents are being told to watch for signs of bizarre behavior in children treated with the flu drug Tamiflu, federal health officials...

• Lawsuit Claims Ortho Evra Birth Control Patch Caused Blood Clots and Miscarriage

  Robert Wolf | September 13, 2006 10:05 AM | 0 CommentsDallas, TX

  A Plano, Texas woman who suffered a miscarriage and developed potentially life-threatening blood clots after using the Ortho Evra birth control patch has filed a federal lawsuit against drug manufacturing giant Johnson & Johnson inMarshall, Texas.According to an article on PR Newswire, Elizabeth Barroso, now 24, began experiencing chest pains and difficulty breathing after using Ortho Evra(R)...

• Merck had Another Bad Week - Two More Plaintiff Victories in Vioxx Lawsuits

  Robert Wolf | August 28, 2006 3:58 PM | 0 CommentsDallas, TX

  Merck & Co. was hit with two major legal setbacks over the withdrawn painkiller Vioxx on Thursday when a federal jury in New Orleans ordered the drugmaker to pay $51 million to a heart attack victim, and a state judge in New Jersey overturned a November verdict favoring the company. In New Orleans, the jury found that Merck "knowingly misrepresented or failed to disclose" information about Vioxx...

• Merck Facing Potential New Lawsuits With Fosamax

  Robert Wolf | July 11, 2006 3:06 PM | 0 CommentsDallas, TX

  As Merck & Co. defends itself against a deluge of litigation involving its pain reliever Vioxx, the pharmaceutical giant also is fielding the first of what could be another wave of lawsuits involving Fosamax, its second-biggest seller. The emerging litigation targeting the osteoporosis drug, still in its early stages, illustrates how quickly Plaintiffs can organize themselves and assemble...

• FDA Issues Warning Regarding Abortion Pill Risks

  Clint Gilbert | March 22, 2006 9:11 AM | 1 CommentDallas, TX

  The recent deaths of two women, coming after both had used the abortion pill Mifepristone (also known as RU-486), has prompted the FDA to issues fresh warnings concerning the use of the drug. These most recent deaths follow at least four known previous deaths linked to the drug.RU-486 is approved to induce medical abortion through the first 49 days of pregnancy. The "pill" is actually a two-step...

• New Concerns Raised With Anti-Clotting Drug Plavix

  Robert Wolf | March 16, 2006 4:04 PM | 0 CommentsDallas, TX

  To the apparent surprise of many researchers, a major study has found no benefit -- and perhaps even some harm -- from adding the anti-clotting drug Plavix to aspirin in an attempt to prevent heart attacks in people at high risk.``Their attempt to extend those results to a larger population group failed,'' said Dr. Matthew Wolff, chief of cardiology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. ``They...

• Adderrall:Is it Worth the Risk?

  Staff Writer | February 24, 2006 8:12 AM | 1 CommentDallas, TX

  It's a scary a thing. Why all of a sudden are more and more of our children being diagnosed daily with attention deficit disorder and hyperactivity and being prescribed so called "cure-all" drugs. A staggering 29 million prescriptions were written in 2004 for stimulant drugs such Adderall, Ritalin and other similar drugs to treat this so called epidemic disease, most of them for children. Two...

• Dangerous Dental Drug Septocaine

  Jeremi Young | January 17, 2006 10:09 AM | 8 CommentsDallas, TX

  Septocaine, an anesthesia used in routine dental procedures, may be a dangerous drug permanent paresthesia (numbness) and dysethesia (persistent pain) in patients. These symptoms are mild in most patients and may fade with time. But in other patients the side effects are permanent and debilitatingThese problems typically occur when Septocaine is used for mandibular blocks, which involve...