Placebos In The News
A study that will appear in European NeuropsychopharmacologyĀ found that "the brain's response to the placebo pill seems to depend ... on whether or not...
Antidepressants, Not Depression, Raise Risk of Preeclampsia in Pregnancy
In a study of 69,448 pregnant women with depression, researchers from the Harvard school of public health found that use of SSRI (selective serotonin...
FDA Adds Warnings to Celexa’s Label
Following up on last August's warning that high doses of Celexa can cause potentially fatal heart rhythm abnormalities, the FDA has added clarification to...
Arkansas Alleges Risperdal Causes Deaths in the Elderly and Lactation in Young Boys
In opening statements in its lawsuit against Johnson & Johnson for lying about Risperdal's risks and promoting its use for unapproved treatments, Arkansas' lawyer...
Antidepressant Use During Pregnancy and Childhood Autism Spectrum Disorders
"ObjectiveĀ Ā To systematically evaluate whether prenatal exposure to antidepressant medications is associated with increased risk of autism spectrum disorder ...Ā ConclusionĀ Ā Although the number of children exposed...
Second-Generation Antipsychotics Just as Likely as Older Drugs to Cause EPS
In a study of an earlier randomized controlled trial of antipsychotics, researchers from Yale and the U.K found that second-generation antipsychotics were as likely...
AztraZeneca Struggling as Generic Seroquel Gets the Green Light
With a U.S. judge refusing to grant an injunction against generic versions of it's top-selling drug Seroquel last Friday, the Wall Street Journal reports...
Psychiatric Drugs, Especially Antipsychotics, Contribute to Increasing Drug Costs
Antipsychotics have overtaken antidepressants as the most costly class of psychiatric medication in England, according to a study by Stephen Ilyas and Joanna Moncrieff...
Arkansas’ $1.25 Billion Risperdal Trial Starts Today
Arkansas' lawsuit against Johnson & Johnson for false and misleading claims regarding Risperdal is set to begin today, the fourth time J&J has a...
Pharmas Exiting Antidepressant Market
As patents expire on current antidepressants pharmaceutical companies are getting out of the market, according to an article in yesterday'sĀ Vancouver Sun. In the latest...
Hypertension in Pregnancy 50% More Likely With SSRIs
Researchers in Montreal found in a sample of 1,216 pregnant women that those who used antidepressants were at least 50% more likely to experience...
Living Alone Nearly Doubles Antidepressant Use
Finnish researchers found that in a study of 3471 men and women, those living alone were almost twice as likely to use an antidepressant....
Spontaneous Improvement in Depression, With and Without Placebo
Researchers at Columbia University and Queens College reviewed 10 trials of antidepressants that used wait-listed controls in order to determine the contribution of spontaneous...
Contribution of Antipsychotics to Suicidality and Depression
Peter Lehmann reviewsĀ the contribution of antipsychotics to suicide and depression in schizophrenia in the currentĀ International Journal of Psychotherapy.Ā Publications about the intrinsic effects of...
Seroquel Abuse Rising, Along With Ambulance Calls
Australian researchers have uncovered an alarming increase of Seroquel-related ambulances calls.Ā Rising prescriptions of of the drug along with its developing use as a drug...
High Cost to Medicaid Programs For Off-Label Use of Antipsychotics
A study of 42 stateĀ Medicaid programsĀ found that 58% of prescriptions for antipsychoticsĀ were not for schizophrenia or bipolar disorder. Off-label prescribing was most prevalent...
Antipsychotic Polypharmacy Commonly Prescribed Ahead of Guidelines
InĀ one day at a psychiatric hospital in Vitoria-Gasteiz, Spain, of the 201 patients admitted 172 were prescribed antipsychotic drugs and 47% of those were...
Rampant Prescription Errors in CA Nursing Homes
Recent investigations by the California Department of Public Health found that in 18 of 31 nursing homes in San Francisco (plus one outside of...
Mother Sues Pfizer for Alleged Zoloft-Related Birth Defects
The latest in a series of Zoloft-related birth defect lawsuits was filed in St. Louis yesterday, by a firm that claims to represent hundreds...
Polypharmacy and Excessive Dosing
Researchers in Japan investigated 139 patients with schizophrenia diagnoses due to be discharged from 19 acute psychiatric units in Japanese hospitals. Polypharmacy and excessive...
45% of Children and Adolescent Inpatients Prescribed Antipsychotics
In a rare long-term study of antipsychotics used in children and adolescent inpatients, the Institute of Living in Hartford, CT followed 3,851 consecutive admissions...
Effort to Curb Antipsychotics for Dementia Announced
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services is launching an initiative to curb the use of antipsychotic medications for nursing home residents with dementia....
Justice Department Raises J&J Settlement to $1.8 Billion
Following Johnson & Johnson's $158 million resolution with Texas several states have demanded higher payments, leading the U.S. Justice Department to raise its demand...
Popularity of Off-Label Antipsychotic Use Grows
Fueled by aggressive marketing that hyped atypical antipsychotics as safe and effective for off-label uses, states an article inĀ The Washington PostĀ yesterday,Ā sales of the drugs...
Ritalin Impairs Learning and Memory
Ritalin reduced impulsive responses and increased the amount of time willing to stay on task of Rhesus monkeys in a study from the University...
