Washington based Consumer Advocate Group, Public Citizen, has been pressing the Food and Drug Administration to take the Alzheimer’s drug, Aricept, off the market.
It was reported on Wednesday In the Associated Press that according to Public Citizen, the FDA’s own medical and statistical reviews found that the highest dose Alzheimer’s disease drug does not in reality work better than two low doses when it comes to controlling symptoms of moderate-to-severe Alzheimer’s disease.
It has also been reported that this high-dose treatment is actually more dangerous and comes with potentially deadly side-effects; more so than the lower dose treatment.
Public Citizen accused the FDA of dragging its feet in halting sales of Aricept and updating the warning label. A formal petition was filed more, in May 2011. Since then 350,000 prescriptions for Aricept 23 have been filled. Don’t these 350,000 Americans deserve to know that the higher dose, presumably better medication that they are taking might be substantially more risky than taking two lower dose pills?
No matter what the condition, all patients deserve to know when there are equal and safer alternatives.
Despite the fact that public citizen filed their petition over a year ago, and lawsuits are pending against the Japanese manufacturers, Eisai Co. Ltd, the FDA has yet to take action In warning the public.
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