Drugs companies accused over adverts

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A study published in The Lancet suggests some companies make false claims in advertisements targeted at doctors.

Researchers urged doctors to be cautious when it comes to prescribing drugs on the basis of advertising.

There is a code of practice that the industry operates throughout Europe

Brian Ager, EFPIA Dr Salvador Peiro from the Valencia School for Health Studies examined all ads for antihypertensive and lipid lowering drugs published in six Spanish medical journals in 1997.

These drugs are used to treat patients with high blood pressure and high cholesterol respectively.

Each of the ads had at least one reference to a study, suggesting that the claims were backed up by research.

Little evidence

However, Dr Peiro found that claims made in 44% of the 102 ads examined were not backed up by evidence.

He suggested that the findings should encourage doctors to think twice before prescribing drugs on the basis of an advertisement. more

-- Anonymous, January 06, 2003

Answers

bumpsie

-- Anonymous, January 06, 2003

makes ya feel safe, don't it?

-- Anonymous, January 06, 2003

And yet they complain about the claims made by vitamin / mineral / herbs!

Sorry ever since I worked on a project to give kick-backs to pharmacies and doctors that prescribed meds produced by the company I worked for, I haven't been too happy about pharmacuetical companies.

-- Anonymous, January 06, 2003


Similarly, my vet has quit working for PetsMart and gone out on his own. Although he hasn't told me sin precise words, several people who worked closely with him have said he quit for the same reason they did--the corporation was always on their backs to suck more money from the patients. Also, people from corporate HQ would call and check on them to see if they properly answered a caller's questions.

One example: A caller said his kitten was three weeks old and he wanted it checked for heartworms. Tee response was the kitten is too young for that test. Right answer but not for the corporation. The tech should have said you'll have to bring the kitten in. That way, even though the vet would say too young, there would still be the hospital visit to pay for.

I asked if the veterninary part making a profit without the additional pressure. Oh YES, came the reply. (They even had cheat sheets to read from, listing a ton of typical questions, and they had to read the exact answers provided.}

By the way, has your vet told you that the veterinarians' own professional association recommends booster shots every THREE years and not every year? (Except rabies, of course, unless you get the 3-year type.)

-- Anonymous, January 06, 2003


Git, what about the WNV vax..all I have read says EVERY YR for horses..now they are saying maynbe 2 a yr if you live in HEAVY skeeter places!

-- Anonymous, January 07, 2003


All I know about are the usual annual boosters for cats. Here's one explanation"

VMTH Vaccination Protocol for Dogs and Cats

Canine and Feline Vaccination Protocols

The medical merit of routine annual boosters for common puppyhood and kittenhood diseases is being questioned, as is the practice of vaccinating for diseases that pose little, if any, risk to the animal being immunized. Because vaccination is a medical and not economic procedure, we recommend that vaccines be administered according to medical criteria including morbidity/mortality for the particular disease, risk of the infection, and life-style and age of the animal. The most important vaccinations are for puppyhood and kittenhood diseases, and then the 3-year boosters.

The first puppy or kittenhood vaccines, as well as routine three-year boosters, should be administered in conjunction with a thorough wellness examination. The purposes of these in-depth examinations are to detect existing or potential health problems and to discuss any questions the owner might have regarding the well-being, care and management of the animal.

more

-- Anonymous, January 07, 2003


Petfinder.com - Dr. Lila Miller, DVM, ASPCA Vaccination Guidelines - The recognition that serious medical conditions such as certain sarcomas and auto-immune hemolytic anemia may be vaccination related have forced the veterinary profession to re-examine vaccine safety and reassess recommendations for vaccinating the average pet owner's companion animal. While the benefits of vaccination still far outweigh the risks, a careful assessment of the risk factors of each individual animal should be undertaken before deciding on a vaccination protocol. Recent investigation into the origins of recommendations for yearly vaccinations for dogs and cats pets have revealed that they may not have been based on any duration of immunity studies or other true scientific data. They are not legal requirements, and have become the subject of the hottest debates in small animal medicine today. The latest studies, although not totally conclusive, provide compelling reasons to believe that many vaccines provide immunity from disease for several years and that annual boosters are not only not necessary but may, in fact, be harmful. Many veterinarians are offering to check vaccination titers in lieu of giving the routine annual booster shot. The days of going to the veterinarian for an annual booster may soon be a thing of the past, to be replaced with an annual physical examination with appropriate vaccinations at specified intervals only. When deciding on a vaccination schedule for your pet, you and your veterinarian may need to take the following into consideration:

-- Anonymous, January 07, 2003

Is the vaccine necessary?

Is the disease found in the area, and how dangerous is the disease?

Is the disease contagious to people?

How effective is the vaccine? How safe is the vaccine?

What is the animal's age? The very young and very old are more in need of vaccination to protect against infectious diseases than adult animals.

What is the general overall health? Immune-compromised, debilitated, pregnant, sick, and stressed animals all present special circumstances that the veterinarian should take into consideration before vaccination What is the animal's risk of exposure to the disease? For example, cats that stay indoors exclusively have very limited, if any, exposure to outside diseases unless the caregiver is working in a shelter or animal hospital, for example, and brings disease home on their hands or clothing. These cats may not require yearly vaccinations, except for rabies if required by local ordnances. Many ordinances require rabies every three years rather than annually.

What is the prevalence of the disease in general? Some areas never experience cases of Lyme disease or corona, so vaccination against these diseases makes little sense unless the owner travels with the pet to areas where these diseases have been found. more

-- Anonymous, January 07, 2003


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