This Antipsychotic’s History Paints Cautionary Tale Of Relationship Between Marketing And Medications
The powerful antipsychotic Seroquel is prescribed "off label" to millions of Americans for an array of ills such as insomnia, agitation in dementia patients, and PTSD, despite medical experts' warnings that the drug can cause diabetes, heart arrhythmia and movement disorders. In other public health news: cancer, gene editing, saline, depression, smoking and more.
The Washington Post:
Popular Drug Seroquel, First Meant For Schizophrenia, Reveals 'Off-Label' Issues
The first warning came a dozen years ago, when the Food and Drug Administration accused the drug company AstraZeneca of “false or misleading” information about health risks in the marketing material for its blockbuster medication Seroquel, an antipsychotic developed to treat schizophrenia but increasingly prescribed “off label” for insomnia. What followed was an onslaught of litigation by state attorneys general, who charged AstraZeneca with fraudulently promoting Seroquel for unapproved uses, and by individual patients, who claimed that it had failed to alert consumers about some of the drug’s most pernicious side effects. Although the company never admitted wrongdoing, by the end of 2011 it had paid out more than $1 billion to settle many of the cases. (Nutt and Keating, 3/30)
The New York Times:
Is This Tissue A New Organ? Maybe. A Conduit For Cancer? It Seems Likely.
Researchers have made new discoveries about the in-between spaces in the human body, and some say it’s time to rewrite the anatomy books. A study published in Scientific Reports this week described a fluid-filled, 3-D latticework of collagen and elastin connective tissue that can be found all over the body, in or near our lungs, skin, digestive tracts and arteries. (Fortin, 3/31)
Stat:
CRISPR Paper That Sent Stocks Tumbling Is Retracted
A scientific paper that purported to lay bare serious flaws in the gene-editing tool known as CRISPR and briefly tanked shares of genome-editing companies has been retracted by its publisher. The paper, published last year in Nature Methods, claimed that CRISPR wreaked havoc on the genome, causing hundreds of unintended mutations in mice — and that the algorithms typically used to detect these changes were routinely missing them. (Keshavan, 3/30)
NPR:
IV 'Normal Saline': A Medical Habit
During a recent walk around the emergency room where I work, I noted the number of patients with bags of intravenous fluids hanging above them. Almost everyone had one. Our ER in Boston isn't unique. IV fluids are among the most common medical interventions worldwide. Several kinds are available, but one called normal saline is by far the most popular. Over 200 million liters are used every year in the United States. (Dalton, 3/31)
The Wall Street Journal:
Prostate-Cancer Gene Test Helps Patients Decide On Treatment
In 37 years as a police officer, Edwin Michel coped with a plane crash, a sniper, wildfires and three bullet wounds. Nothing much rattled him until he was diagnosed with prostate cancer in November 2016. His doctor said the cancer wouldn’t kill him but Mr. Michel, now 76 years old, wasn’t entirely reassured. He felt more confident after a genomics test later revealed his prostate cancer was very low risk. The test, known as Oncotype DX, takes a sample from a prostate biopsy and analyzes 17 genes in it to estimate how aggressive a cancer may be. (Lagnado, 3/31)
The Washington Post:
Teen Depression Is A Big Problem And It's Hard To Find Treatment
Mental-health treatment in America has plenty of room for improvement. Depression, in particular, is underdiagnosed and undertreated. The American Academy of Pediatrics took a big step in February to address one deficit — early identification of depression in adolescents. The group called for every child to be screened for depression every year, starting at age 12. (Adams, 3/31)
The New York Times:
Devices To Quit Smoking Become The Devices Teenagers Can’t Quit
The student had been caught vaping in school three times before he sat in the vice principal’s office at Cape Elizabeth High School in Maine this winter and shamefacedly admitted what by then was obvious.“I can’t stop,” he told the vice principal, Nate Carpenter. So Mr. Carpenter asked the school nurse about getting the teenager nicotine gum or a patch, to help him get through the school day without violating the rules prohibiting vaping. (Zernike, 3/2)
The Washington Post:
Mysterious 'Smoker's Cough' Took Little Girl's Doctors 12 Years To Figure Out
Why does she keep coughing, Eva Shea wondered about her daughter Mimi, as she had countless times. And why did the preschooler sound as though she had a two-pack-a-day cigarette habit? Over the years, Shea had asked about the wet cough during frequent visits to the pediatrician and specialists across Northern Virginia. Although doctors sometimes seemed concerned, many were reassuring. Kids get frequent respiratory infections, it doesn’t bother her, nothing showed up on tests, they variously told Shea. (Boodman, 3/31)
Miami Herald:
Diaper Cream Recalled After FDA Finds Yeast, Mold, Bacteria
Four lots of a Mexican diaper cream sold at Walmart, Walgreens, CVS, Rite Aid and several other chain stores have been recalled after the FDA found some of it “contaminated with high levels of yeast, mold, and bacteria.” (Neal, 4/1)
