Personal Injury Law

Possibility of Risks-More than 20 Drugs Under FDA Monitoring

By Jessica Smagacz

According to Red Orbit, FDA released a list of over twenty drugs that are being tested for potential safety issues.

The list that was released this past Thursday had two-dozen different drugs, ranging from treatment of sleep disorder to weight-loss.

Sally Beatty, spokeswoman for Pfizer, said, 'As with all our medicines, we work with the FDA to ensure our labeling reflects the latest safety information.' Pfizer Inc has a drug called Chantix that is on this list. This drug helps people quit smoking. FDA regulators are trying to see if the drug has any possible risk of accidental injury or vision impairment to patients.

Investigations began on the drug Chantix in 2007 after reports of psychiatric problems. Apparently a nonprofit group reported 1,001 cases of accidental injuries and blackouts from people who used Chantix.

The Federal Aviation Administration has banned the smoking cessation drug for use among air traffic controllers and pilots.

Some other drugs on the list are Pfizer's bladder control Detrol—there have been reports of Stevens-Johnson syndrome (a serious skin reaction). Caphalon Inc's sleep disorder drugs (Provigil and Nuvigil) are on the list because of serious skin reactions that were reported.

Full post as published by Atlanta Personal Injury Lawyer on June 07, 2009 (boomark / email).