A startling article entitled, “Conflict of Interest in the Assessment of Thromboprophylaxis” appeared in the January 2012 issue of The Journal of Bone & Joint Surgery. A group of investigators were curious about the possibility of bias during evidence-based reviews and they conducted a retrospective study, centering on prescription choice […]
Monthly Archives: January 2012
Pradaxa (also known as Dabigatran Etexilate) is an inactive “parent” drug that relies on the body’s metabolism to eventually manufacture a form of the drug that the body can use as an anti-coagulant, a process that occurs after the drug has been ingested by a patient. Anti-coagulants such as Warfarin […]
In late 2010, the FDA approved the drug called Pradaxa (dabigatran); manufactured by Boehringer Ingelheim. Pradaxa is a blood thinner and is supposed to be prescribed to patients who suffer from the cardiac disorder atrial fibrillation. Atrial Fibrillation is the most common form of abnormal heart rhythm. Patients who suffer […]
The new Personal Injury Protection (PIP) legislation being trumpeted by Rick Scott and Kevin McCarty (insurance commissioner) is simply a series of methods to attack a problem by saddling honest consumers with more regulation and less benefit. The claim is that the PIP system is so filled with fraud that […]
Major risk factors for Type 2 diabetes include a lack of exercise, being overweight and making poor diet choices. Eating a hamburger served between doughnuts; a recipe for which Paula Deen is famous certainly fits into the “poor diet choice category. Typically, when a celebrity reveals that he or she […]
When faced with a possible danger, how much of a warning do you need? As far as the Food and Drug Administration is concerned, your tolerance for risk is pretty high. And what about its responsibility for sounding the alarm? Eh, that can wait a while. When picking up a […]
You wouldn’t let your toddler play in a busy street. That’s just good common sense that you already know. However, if you’re in a more precarious position—perhaps you’re pregnant and depressed—you need expert guidance you can trust to keep you healthy and your baby out of danger. You should be […]
Let’s say you want to form a committee to evaluate the safety of a drug; say for example the drugs Yaz, Ocella and Yasmin. You begin by looking for people who are “experts” about the drug, the ingredients in the drug and the use of the drug. You find 26 […]