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July 25, 2008 1:20:33 PM CDT

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Stories related to: prescription drugs

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  • July 2008

    • Parkinson's Drugs Trigger Compulsive Behavior

      newser  |  Chicago Tribune  |  Jul 14, 08 1:14 PM CDT

      Parkinson's Drugs Trigger Compulsive Behavior

      Drugs for Parkinson's disease can be enormously beneficial, relieving patients' tremors and rigid muscles. But some patients are now complaining of an unusual side effect—extreme compulsive behavior. One woman began taking Mirapex to combat symptoms and suddenly found herself with a $200-a-day scratch-off lottery ticket habit, reports the Chicago Tribune . More »

      Tags

      gambling  • prescription drugs  • addiction  • Parkinson's disease  • dopamine  • Mirapex

    • Popular Cancer Drug Is Iffy and Expensive

      newser  |  New York Times  |  Jul 6, 08 10:48 AM CDT

      Popular Cancer Drug Is Iffy and Expensive

      Avastin is one of the most widely prescribed cancer drugs in the world, but it might not work, the New York Times reports. The drug, made by Genentech, brings in about $2.3 billion a year in the US alone, but recent trials have shown that though the drug shrinks tumors in sufferers of colon, breast, and lung cancer, it offers little extension of life. More »

      Tags

      cancer  • breast cancer  • prescription drugs  • lung cancer  • colon cancer  • cancer treatment  • clinical trials  • Avastin

  • June 2008

    • 8 Meds Docs Won't Take

      newser  |  Men's Health  |  Jun 23, 08 7:55 PM CDT

      8 Meds Docs Won't Take

      Some drugs have such serious drawbacks that even doctors won’t take them, Men’s Health reports. The big eight: Advair: Can actually increase the severity of asthma attacks Avandia: Diabetes drug carries risk of heart attack More »

      Tags

      drugs  • doctor  • prescription drugs  • opinion  • methamphetamine  • medical treatment  • Avandia  • over-the-counter drugs

    • Congress: No More Scribbled Scrips, Doc

      newser  |  Chicago Tribune  |  Jun 12, 08 4:29 PM CDT

      Congress: No More Scribbled Scrips, Doc

      Senators from both sides of the aisle are pushing doctors away from their prescription pads and towards electronic prescribing, the Chicago Tribune reports. Politicians and lobbyists hope the new system will cut down on mis-filled prescriptions and harmful, but avoidable, drug interactions. More »

      Tags

      drugs  • medicine  • doctor  • prescription drugs  • Medicare  • legislation  • electronic prescriptions  • pharmacy

  • May 2008

    • Study: Drug Ads Misleading. No, Really.

      newser  |  Time  |  May 18, 08 12:18 PM CDT

      Study: Drug Ads Misleading. No, Really.

      Drug ads are multiplying on TV, and manufacturers are starting to advertise medical equipment used in invasive procedures, so now might be a good time to wonder what the spots are telling us. Not as much as they should, Time reports. An independent researcher has found drug companies are using distractions, fast-talking, and tricks gleaned from neuroscience to downplay negative side-effects. More »

      Tags

      advertising  • FDA  • consumer  • prescription drugs  • drug companies  • side effects  • TV advertising

  • April 2008

    • McCain Pitches 'Gas Tax Holiday,' Drug, Pork Limits

      newser  |  Pittsburgh Post-Gazette  |  Apr 15, 08 12:50 PM CDT

      McCain Pitches 'Gas Tax Holiday,' Drug, Pork Limits

      John McCain used a tax day appearance to propose a summer “gas tax holiday,” calling his plan to suspend the 18-cent levy “an immediate economic stimulus.” Among other economic initiatives the candidate outlined today were upping prescription drug premiums for wealthy retirees, declaring a moratorium on discretionary spending, and protecting college students' financial aid, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports. More »

      Tags

      John McCain  • prescription drugs  • economic stimulus  • pork barrel spending  • financial aid  • gas tax

    • Insurers Quietly Hike Rx Costs

      newser  |  New York Times  |  Apr 14, 08 9:47 AM CDT

      Insurers Quietly Hike Rx Costs

      Pricey prescription drugs are getting pricier, and, the New York Times reports, insurance companies are asking patients to shoulder more of the burden. Insurers are quietly phasing out traditional drug plans, which charge a fixed co-pay of $20 or $30 to fill a prescription, in favor of so-called Tier 4 plans, which squeeze patients who need certain expensive drugs for as much as a third of their cost—which can run to thousands of dollars a month. More »

      Tags

      health care  • prescription drugs  • insurance  • drug companies  • insurance companies  • co-pays

  • February 2008

    • Cops Probe Claim Britney Was Drugged

      newser  |  E! Online  |  Feb 28, 08 5:19 AM CST

      Cops Probe Claim Britney Was Drugged

      As Britney Spears' True Hollywood Story unfolds in real time, the latest dust-up centers on mother Lynne Spears' accusations that her daughter was drugged by former manager Sam Lutfi. The LAPD is working "to determine if laws have been violated" in response to Lynne's deposition claiming that Lutfi told her he had added ground-up pills to Britney's food, reports E! Online. More »

      Tags

      Britney Spears  • prescription drugs  • LAPD  • Lynne Spears  • Sam Lutfi  • Risperdal  • Seroquel

    • Polly Want a Prozac?

      newser  |  Daily Telegraph (UK)  |  Feb 26, 08 9:33 AM CST

      Polly Want a Prozac?

      With more pet owners working long days and leaving their furry and feathered friends alone at home, cases of animal depression are on the rise, writes the Daily Telegraph . A TV vet says the trend is hitting parrots especially hard, causing the talkative birds to pull out their feathers or peck at their own legs—until they're dosed with Prozac. More »

      Tags

      dog  • pets  • depression  • prescription drugs  • antidepressant  • Eli Lilly  • parrot  • medicating pets

    • Antidepressants Mostly Useless, Study Finds

      newser  |  Independent (UK)  |  Feb 26, 08 7:41 AM CST

      Antidepressants Mostly Useless, Study Finds

      Big Pharma swallowed a bitter pill yesterday as Prozac and other antidepressants were found in a UK study to be largely ineffectual in all but the most extreme cases of depression. The meta-analysis of 47 clinical trials submitted to the FDA with licensing applications for six popular antidepressants concluded that they should be prescribed only when all other treatments fail to yield results, the Independent reports. More »

      Tags

      depression  • medical breakthrough  • prescription drugs  • antidepressant  • GlaxoSmithKline  • pharmaceutical industry  • therapy  • Wyeth  • Eli Lilly  • Prozac

    • Viagra Linked to Reduced Fertility

      newser  |  Guardian (UK)  |  Feb 24, 08 6:32 AM CST

      Viagra Linked to Reduced Fertility

      Popular sexual potency drug Viagra has been linked to sperm effects so dramatic that it could seriously affect male fertility, researchers have discovered. The findings are particularly troubling because in-vitro fertilization clinics often provide Viagra to men to increase sperm production. The new studies show that while Viagra increases sperm activity, it also damages the enzymes that allow the sperm to enter and fertilize an egg. More »

      Tags

      Great Britain  • prescription drugs  • scientific study  • Viagra  • in vitro fertilization  • sperm  • eggs  • recreational drugs  • off label drug use

    • Bueller, Er, Bartlett Is a Pill

      newser  |  Metacritic  |  Feb 22, 08 12:06 PM CST

      Bueller, Er, Bartlett Is a Pill

      Charlie Bartlett , about a charming but troubled high school student who dispenses advice and prescription medication to his classmates, is being given mostly passing grades by critics. Sure, the teen film hits the expected themes of "angst, alienation, loneliness, disenchantment, and drug use," writes the Hollywood Reporter 's Kirk Honeycutt. At the same time, it maintains a deft comic touch through "keen observation." More »

      Tags

      movie  • movie review  • teenagers  • comedy  • high school  • prescription drugs  • Robert Downey Jr.

    • Suicides Spike Among Middle-Aged

      newser  |  New York Times  |  Feb 19, 08 10:10 AM CST

      Suicides Spike Among Middle-Aged

      Suicide rates among middle-aged Americans have spiked dramatically in recent years, in contrast to flat or declining rates in younger and older demographics, mystifying experts, reports the New York Times . For people 45 to 54, the rate jumped 20% between 1999 and 2004;  for women, the increase was 31%. Theories about the cause include lack of support systems, declining hormone-replacement therapy use, and prevalence of prescription painkillers . More »

    • Ledger's Death Sheds Light on 'Polypharmacy'

      newser  |  USA Today  |  Feb 12, 08 10:11 PM CST

      Ledger's Death Sheds Light on 'Polypharmacy'

      Before you take two of anything, make sure you're acting on doctor's orders experts say. In the wake of Heath Ledger's death by accidental overdose, USA Today probes the dangers of polypharmacy, or taking multiple drugs at once. "It's extraordinarily dangerous for people to try to self-medicate," says a DEA spokeswoman. "It's like having a loaded gun." More »

      Tags

      Heath Ledger  • prescription drugs

    • US, UK Zero in on Illegal Prescription Drug Abuse

      newser  |  Guardian (UK)  |  Feb 10, 08 1:09 PM CST

      US, UK Zero in on Illegal Prescription Drug Abuse

      American and British officials have launched campaigns to curb the illegal use of prescription drugs. The target of the British effort is doctors who "mis-prescribe" high doses of painkillers and sleeping pills that officials say are proving dangerously addictive, the Guardian reports. Across the Atlantic, Washington is spearheading an initiative to alert parents to the new drug threat facing teens. More »

      Tags

      United Kingdom  • doctor  • Heath Ledger  • prescription drugs  • drug addiction  • patients  • painkiller  • sleeping pills  • over-the-counter drugs

    • Accidental OD Killed Ledger

      newser  |  Associated Press  |  Feb 6, 08 9:26 AM CST

      Accidental OD Killed Ledger

      Actor Heath Ledger died of an accidental overdose of sleeping pills, painkillers, and anti-anxiety medication, the New York City Medical Examiner's Office ruled today. OxyContin, Valium, Xanax, Restoril, Unisom, and ibuprofen combined to result in a lethal "acute intoxication," an ME spokeswoman told the AP.  More »

      Tags

      Heath Ledger  • prescription drugs  • autopsy  • overdose  • Brokeback Mountain  • OxyContin  • Kim Ledger  • Xanax  • Valium  • ibuprofen

  • January 2008

    • Risky Errors on Rise With Sound-Alike Drugs

      newser  |  Reuters  |  Jan 30, 08 9:24 AM CST

      Risky Errors on Rise With Sound-Alike Drugs

      The problem of drug-name mix-ups is growing in the US, with harmful and sometimes even fatal consequences for patients, USA Today reports. A study undertaken by the group that regulates generic drug names found that the rate of mix-ups has more than doubled since 2004. In one case, a 7-year-old boy ended up in the emergency room after being given schizophrenia drug Zyprexa instead of  the allergy drug Zyrtec. More »

      Tags

      prescription drugs  • pharmaceutical  • prescription  • generic drugs

    • Ledger's Kin Bid Farewell in LA

      newser  |  The Australian  |  Jan 28, 08 3:35 AM CST

      Ledger's Kin Bid Farewell in LA

      Actor Heath Ledger's family and friends held a private memorial in Los Angeles Saturday before his body was flown to his native Australia for funeral services. Mourners included his parents, sister Kate, ex-girlfriend actress Michelle Williams—mother of his toddler daughter, Matilda—and another former lover, Naomi Watts, reports the Australian . Security guards kept away paparazzi and anti-gay activists protesting Ledger's role in Brokeback Mountain . More »

      Tags

      Heath Ledger  • prescription drugs  • funeral  • Cate Blanchett  • Michelle Williams  • Brokeback Mountain  • Beverly Hills Hotel  • Naomi Watts  • memorial service

    • Overdose Deaths Up Sharply

      newser  |  Los Angeles Times  |  Jan 26, 08 8:05 AM CST

      Overdose Deaths Up Sharply

      The death of Heath Ledger from a suspected drug overdose has highlighted a huge spike in drug overdoses in the US, reports the Los Angeles Times . Accidental poisoning deaths, 95% of which are overdoses, rose sharply from 12,186 in 1999 to 20,950 in 2004. Doctors say prescription drugs, which are often casually prescribed and easy to get online, are behind the alarming rise. More »

      Tags

      cocaine  • Heath Ledger  • prescription drugs  • drug overdose  • overdose

    • US Health Care Spending Tops Record $2T

      newser  |  Bloomberg  |  Jan 9, 08 4:40 AM CST

      US Health Care Spending Tops Record $2T

      US health-care spending in 2006 increased 6.7% to a record $2.1 trillion—an average of  $7,000 for every person in America. Medicare spending jumped 19%, its fastest growth rate in 25 years, according to the latest government statistics published yesterday in the journal Health Affairs . The Medicare boost was due largely to shifting 6.2 million low-income seniors from Medicaid drug programs to a subsidized Medicare prescription plan. More »

      Tags

      prescription drugs  • Medicare  • health care costs  • Medicaid

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