Unsafe Drugs & Medical Devices

July 13th, 2015

Last summer we published a post about growing numbers of injuries sustained by patients during surgeries with the da Vinci surgical robot system, e.g. “tears and burns, to blood vessels, intestines, uterus and vaginal cuff dehiscence.” Complaints have also been leveled against the electrical arms …

June 17th, 2015

A revelatory article in a recent edition of the Wall Street Journal sheds light on one of the most important factors influencing prescription drug pricing: their brand labels. The authors of the story, which ran with the headline, “Pharmaceutical Companies Buy Rivals’ Drugs, Then Jack …

May 13th, 2015

When we first covered the alleged link between testosterone drug therapy and cardiovascular problems–particularly in older men–last June, there were about 50 such cases pending across the country. Now there are at least 1,500, and that number is growing every week. Reports do not vary …

May 6th, 2015

Since at least 2009, researchers have been aware that MiraLax, an over-the-counter laxative manufactured by Bayer Corp., is not safe for patients who suffer from kidney disease. But this did not stop the company and is affiliates from allowing the drug to be taken by …

April 8th, 2015

Having covered the dangers that hospitals pose (on several occasions) and the previousfailures of the FDA to keep consumers safe (again, on several occasions), it will come as no surprise to readers to learn that the topic of this post brings the two together. Several …

March 18th, 2015

Health experts have long criticized store-brand herbal supplements. And finally they have been vindicated. The Attorney General’s office recently oversaw testing on products from nationwide chains like Walmart, Walgreens, Target, and GNC, finding that only a very small minority contained any of the ingredients listed …

March 4th, 2015

For many years, consumers have taken Benadryl as a sleep aid, assuming that it is a safe and non-habit forming solution for occasional insomnia. A recent study, however, led by Dr. Shelly Gray of the University of Washington School of Pharmacy and published in JAMA …

February 4th, 2015

The investigative journalism website ProPublica, in conjunction with the New York Times medical blog The Upshot, recently published an article analyzing drug companies’ spending over the past five months in order to ascertain what drugs and medical devices they were promoting most heavily. The answer, it …

January 28th, 2015

When it comes to regulation, there are many areas in which the FDA could improve its practices–compounding pharmacies, energy drinks, herbal dietary products, generic drugs,testosterone supplements, plastic water bottles, and cancer treatments–but we can now add diabetes medication like Januvia, Byetta, and Victoza to this list …

January 7th, 2015

Back in October 2012, this blog began covering a fungal meningitis outbreak originating in Massachusetts that eventually killed sixty-four people and injured over 750 more across twenty states. Authorities traced the debilitating outbreak to the New England Compounding Center, a pharmaceutical company that provided personalized …

December 17th, 2014

This blog has been covering issues related to generic drugs–warning labels, FDA oversight, and legal immunity–for more than a year, but this industry is nothing if not persistent. One of the largest manufacturers of generic pharmaceuticals in the world–Ranbaxy Laboratories, with net revenue of $2 …

December 10th, 2014

In the past few months, this blog has explored ways in which class action lawsuits and FDA regulation affect the lives of everyday Americans. Today we will discuss the corporation Herbalife–which sells “nutrition, weight-management, energy and fitness, and personal care products”–in a story that combines …