The antidepressant reboxetine: A “headdesk” moment in science | Guest Blog, Scientific American Blog Network: "For psychiatry and behavioral pharmacology, one of those moments came a few weeks ago with the findings of a meta-analysis published in the British Medical Journal (Eyding et al., 2010). The meta-analysis showed that an antidepressant, reboxetine (marketed by Pfizer in Europe, but not in the U.S., under the names Edronax, Norebox, Prolift, Solvex, Davedax or Vestra) doesn’t work. Not only does it not work, it really doesn’t work, and it turns out that Pfizer hadn’t published data on the putative antidepressant from 74% of their patients. "
'via Blog this'
New symptoms for ADHD diagnosis
New symptoms for ADHD diagnosis: "In a published ''pros and cons'' list about the additional symptoms, the committee said they were "not empirically derived" and had potential to decrease the accuracy of the criteria.
Melissa Raven, a psychiatric epidemiologist and policy analyst at Flinders University, in Adelaide, said that was an "absolutely damning statement".
"They have identified some problems then proceeded blithely on," she said.
Allen Frances, the chairman of the taskforce that produced the present edition of the DSM, said when they increased the number of symptoms they produced an ''epidemic'' of ADHD. They thought it would increase by 15 per cent, but it actually increased by 200 per cent."
'via Blog this'
Melissa Raven, a psychiatric epidemiologist and policy analyst at Flinders University, in Adelaide, said that was an "absolutely damning statement".
"They have identified some problems then proceeded blithely on," she said.
Allen Frances, the chairman of the taskforce that produced the present edition of the DSM, said when they increased the number of symptoms they produced an ''epidemic'' of ADHD. They thought it would increase by 15 per cent, but it actually increased by 200 per cent."
'via Blog this'
'Miracle' drugs put thousands at risk
'Miracle' drugs put thousands at risk: "THOUSANDS of Australians could be taken off cholesterol-lowering medications because of mounting evidence they increase the risk of diabetes and dementia.
Australian health authorities are reviewing their advice after US regulators announced statins will now carry warnings they could increase the risk of diabetes and cognitive impairment.
Statins are the most commonly prescribed drugs in Australia, with about 2 million people thought to be taking them to reduce their heart disease risk."
'via Blog this'
Australian health authorities are reviewing their advice after US regulators announced statins will now carry warnings they could increase the risk of diabetes and cognitive impairment.
Statins are the most commonly prescribed drugs in Australia, with about 2 million people thought to be taking them to reduce their heart disease risk."
'via Blog this'
Madness is undergoing a redesign
Madness is undergoing a redesign: "You know how sometimes you just go a little bit crazy when you have your period? Well, it turns out PMS is about to become a mental illness.
Madness is currently undergoing a redesign, with the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, often called the ‘Psychiatrist’s Bible’ being updated.
Basically, a big group of grey-haired psychiatrists have been getting together to decide what qualifies someone as being mentally ill.
There are a whole heap of proposed changes that have the potential to change how we think about our bodies and behaviours. Rape is set to become a mental disorder, and wanting to have sex all the time is being considered for inclusion."
'via Blog this'
Madness is currently undergoing a redesign, with the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, often called the ‘Psychiatrist’s Bible’ being updated.
Basically, a big group of grey-haired psychiatrists have been getting together to decide what qualifies someone as being mentally ill.
There are a whole heap of proposed changes that have the potential to change how we think about our bodies and behaviours. Rape is set to become a mental disorder, and wanting to have sex all the time is being considered for inclusion."
'via Blog this'
Does doctor still know best? | Australian cardiologists
Does doctor still know best? | Australian cardiologists: "Are Professor MacMahon and the other cardiovascular researchers and clinicians who have called the article “sensationalist” and “hysterical” saying that it is hysterical or sensationalist to suggest that people at low-risk of heart disease should reconsider their use of statins? I would say that position is mainstream, and a conservative approach.
It’s also worth pointing out that sometimes, as in the case of this Medical Observer article, the criticisms are made without the speakers declaring their links to pharmaceutical companies that produce lipid-lowering medications."
'via Blog this'
It’s also worth pointing out that sometimes, as in the case of this Medical Observer article, the criticisms are made without the speakers declaring their links to pharmaceutical companies that produce lipid-lowering medications."
'via Blog this'
A significant admission from an ETS surgeon, President of the ISSS:
"General represents the ESB (whether as ETS as ETSC or ELS) a substantial interference in regulatory processes of the body represent the decision for this operation requires that previously conservative treatments were made. An ESB is therefore at the end of a treatment history, and never at the beginning."
http://www.dhhz.de/index....;subPage=§ion=32
it is an automatic translation (google) from german, so you have to look at what the 'gist' of what he is saying: ETS, ESB = "a substantial interference in regulatory processes of the body"
The drugs don't work: a modern medical scandal | Ben Goldacre | Business | The Guardian
The drugs don't work: a modern medical scandal | Ben Goldacre | Business | The Guardian: "
Drugs are tested by the people who manufacture them, in poorly designed trials, on hopelessly small numbers of weird, unrepresentative patients, and analysed using techniques that are flawed by design, in such a way that they exaggerate the benefits of treatments. Unsurprisingly, these trials tend to produce results that favour the manufacturer. When trials throw up results that companies don't like, they are perfectly entitled to hide them from doctors and patients, so we only ever see a distorted picture of any drug's true effects. Regulators see most of the trial data, but only from early on in a drug's life, and even then they don't give this data to doctors or patients, or even to other parts of government. This distorted evidence is then communicated and applied in a distorted fashion."
'via Blog this'
Drugs are tested by the people who manufacture them, in poorly designed trials, on hopelessly small numbers of weird, unrepresentative patients, and analysed using techniques that are flawed by design, in such a way that they exaggerate the benefits of treatments. Unsurprisingly, these trials tend to produce results that favour the manufacturer. When trials throw up results that companies don't like, they are perfectly entitled to hide them from doctors and patients, so we only ever see a distorted picture of any drug's true effects. Regulators see most of the trial data, but only from early on in a drug's life, and even then they don't give this data to doctors or patients, or even to other parts of government. This distorted evidence is then communicated and applied in a distorted fashion."
'via Blog this'
The drugs don't work: a modern medical scandal | Ben Goldacre | Business | The Guardian
The drugs don't work: a modern medical scandal | Ben Goldacre | Business | The Guardian: "Drugs are tested by their manufacturers, in poorly designed trials, on hopelessly small numbers of weird, unrepresentative patients, and analysed using techniques that exaggerate the benefits."
'via Blog this'
'via Blog this'
Ending over-diagnosis: how to help without harming
Ending over-diagnosis: how to help without harming: "Over-diagnosis is a significant problem that’s already common in some areas of medicine, such as screening and some mental health conditions. It is a problem now but a bigger threat for the future: better imaging technologies, more biomarkers, more genetic tests and so on, will gradually expand the amount of over-diagnosis that’s possible."
'via Blog this'
'via Blog this'
Senate Committees – Parliament of Australia
Senate Committees – Parliament of Australia: "PIR pointed to doctors' fears that patients might `lose confidence in the health care system and the advice of health care professionals' if patients were more aware of the `unknowns and risks' which might be revealed in medical and health records. "
'via Blog this'
'via Blog this'
False positives: fraud and misconduct are threatening scientific research | Science | The Guardian
False positives: fraud and misconduct are threatening scientific research | Science | The Guardian: "Publishing his results in the journal PLoS One, he found that an average of 1.97% of scientists admitted to having "fabricated, falsified or modified data or results at least once – a serious form of misconduct by any standard – and up to 33.7% admitted other questionable research practices. In surveys asking about the behaviour of colleagues, admission rates were 14.12% for falsification, and up to 72% for other questionable research practices.""
'via Blog this'
'via Blog this'
Private doctors criticised on births
Private doctors criticised on births: "TENS of thousands of Australian women with low risk of birth complications are undergoing unnecessary medical interventions in private hospitals in a trend that a leading midwifery expert has described as ''horrifying''.
In a landmark study of nearly 700,000 women in NSW hospitals, those giving birth privately were found to have a 20 per cent lower chance of having their first child through normal vaginal delivery.
''The fact that these procedures which were initially life saving are now so commonplace and do not appear to be associated with improved [baby] death rates demands close review,'' found the study, to be published today in the British Medical Journal's open journal.
''The findings … suggest a two-tier system exists in Australia without any obvious benefit for women and babies and a level of medical overservicing which is difficult to defend.''
The leader of the study, Hannah Dahlen, said the women examined between 2000 and 2008 were aged 20 to 34, were not pre-term or overdue and carried babies of normal weight."
'via Blog this'
In a landmark study of nearly 700,000 women in NSW hospitals, those giving birth privately were found to have a 20 per cent lower chance of having their first child through normal vaginal delivery.
''The fact that these procedures which were initially life saving are now so commonplace and do not appear to be associated with improved [baby] death rates demands close review,'' found the study, to be published today in the British Medical Journal's open journal.
''The findings … suggest a two-tier system exists in Australia without any obvious benefit for women and babies and a level of medical overservicing which is difficult to defend.''
The leader of the study, Hannah Dahlen, said the women examined between 2000 and 2008 were aged 20 to 34, were not pre-term or overdue and carried babies of normal weight."
'via Blog this'
Sympathectomy controversial for the treatment of RSD
What Is Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy Syndrome (RSD)?
Complex Regional Pain Syndrome
By Carol Eustice, About.com Guide
Updated June 06, 2012
About.com Health's Disease and Condition content is reviewed by the Medical Review Board
http://arthritis.about.com/od/rsd/a/rsd.htm
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