drug

A study recently published in the Journal of the American Medical Association says that the cancer drug Avastin (bevacizumab) raises a patients’ risk of death by up to 350 percent when combined with chemotherapy. According to an article on CNN, Avastin is also responsible for causing blood clots in legs and lungs when used as directed. The drug is designed to stop the production of new blood vessels and there [...]

With the shift toward computerized medical records to reduce medical malpractice, this story in The Los Angeles Times shows that human error can still influence a patient’s outcome. A baby was born 16 weeks premature in a hospital in Park Ridge, Illinois, when a pharmacy technician typed the wrong information into a computer screen. The baby received an automatic intravenous solution of sodium chloride – mo [...]

During the past year, there have been embarrassing stories coming out of universities, some of them Ivy League, about medical doctors who are paid consultants for major pharmaceutical companies. An article on Boston.com stated that Sen. Charles Grassley of Iowa has uncovered many conflicts between academia and business, and Harvard and Emory physicians have reportedly broken the university rules for reporting the a [...]

Over the last three decades as a Pennsylvania car accident and truck accident lawyer, I have shared the pain with all too many parents and families who have suffered losses or catastrophic injury and wrongful death as a result of a car accident caused by a driver while intoxicated by virtue of drugs or alcohol. While we often read of high statistics for DUI, statistics are not normally kept for those driving a mot [...]

Recently, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced new data suggesting that Topamax (topiramate) and its generic versions increase the risk for an infant to be born with the birth defects cleft palate and cleft lip if their mother used the medication during pregnancy. However, it is important to note that women who are currently taking Topamax or any of its generic forms should not stop doing so unless [...]

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced on March 4, 2011 that Topamax (topiramate) and its generic forms heighten the danger of an infant suffering cleft lip and cleft palate if their mother took the drug while pregnant. Topamax is used to treat specific types of seizures in individuals with epilepsy and is also used to prevent migraine headaches. Women who are currently pregnant and are taking Topamax sho [...]

A new study raises new concerns about Zetia and Vytorin, drugs taken by millions of Americans to lower cholesterol. According to an article by the Associated Press on Philly.com, Zetia failed to shrink buildups in artery walls while a rival drug, Niaspan, did so significantly. Zetia users also suffered more heart attacks and other problems although the numbers of these events were too small to draw firm conclusions [...]

Federal health regulators have found tiny particles of trash in drugs made by Genzyme, a biotechnology company. This is the second time this year the company has been cited for contamination issues. According to an Associated Press article, on November 13, the Food and Drug Administration said that bits of steel, rubber, and fiber found in vials of drugs used to treat rare enzyme disorders could cause serious adver [...]

On November 17, federal health officials said that a popular variety of heartburn medications can interfere with the blood thinner Plavix, a drug taken by millions of Americans to reduce risks of heart attack and stroke. The Associated Press reported in an article that the Food and Drug Administration said the drugs Prilosec and Nexium cut in half the blood-thinning effect of Plavix, known generically as clopidogre [...]

A Philadelphia jury is weighing punitive damages against drugmaker Wyeth. According to an article by the Associated Press, there is link between the Illinois woman’s breast cancer and the hormone-replacement drug she took. The woman’s case is one of many Prempro lawsuits to go to trial out of several thousand filed across the country. About 1,500 are pending in Philadelphia. The Philadelphia jury awarded $3.7 [...]