IMS HEALTH - Year-end statistics show anti-depressants, anti-arthritic Sales.

[Guest guest]

I hope we all had a good rest and enjoyed our families over the long week-end. I just want you to ask yourself this question, " is our society in decay because of profit at any cost ? Will their be massive suits in the future hitting companies hard ? or massive global unrest ( civil war ) it seems that it is here now !

We are so desensitized to this.

“All truth passes through three stages: First it is Ridiculed. Second, it is Violently Opposed. Third, it is Accepted as being Self-Evident.” - Arthur Schopenhauer (1778-1860)

Financial services has it's own problems, but killing people for profit ! It is a disgrace and deserves worthy attention. Try 300 deaths per 1/4 slightly ahead of expectations, First call will let us know ! You people write about Corporations, how about their consumers.

THIS IS HEADING TOWARDS TOBACCO SHOW-DOWN, GIVE IT 10 MORE YEARS, TOO MANY VICTIMS, MORE COVER -UP, USING FLAWED mystique

I ve become a living example, my family and 2 small boys 3 and 5. We lost $ 500,000 + 6 years of interest, and the cure from the other side was, take a " Free sample " Please attached, where I (Colin on ) wanted to die so bad ( 6 times ) from with-draw, that was after raging out on Effxor ( American Home products ) I believe these people have known this for too long.

Trust me, the Regulators do, they use my forensic abilities to seek the facts on the companies they look into. The O.S.C will be releasing the news about Yorkton Securities, it's not a pretty picture, more embarassment, so what ! no one seems to care enough.

Case of note :Hodgkinson v. Simms ( 1994 ) B.C Supreme Court case " Breach of Fiduciary Duty " Hodgkinson v. Simms, [1994] 3 S.C.R. 377 This is the case we are moving on with against a Canadian Broker ! plus a long list of the usual parsite antics

Say No To Psychiatry http://www.sntp.net/drugs/drugs.htm SSRI medications. 63% of 1,734 deaths reported - 1,089 - were attributed to suicides and suicide attempts. No one can proud of this

Annual Review of Prescribing and Diagnoses Trends

Year-end statistics show anti-depressants, anti-arthritic sales are booming in Canada, anti-infectives fall for second year.

Montreal, Quebec, March 28, 2001 – In its annual review of prescribing and diagnoses trends, IMS HEALTH, Canada reports patient visits for depressive disorders show the largest increase among Canada’s leading diagnoses. Over the last six years (1995-2000), visits for depression have gone up 36%. In 2000, Canadians made 7.8 million consultations with office-based physicians for depressive disorders, an increase of almost 10% over 1999 when visits totalled 7.1 million. Forty-seven per cent of those visiting were aged 40-59, with the next largest group made up of 20-39 year-olds. In 1995, it was the fourth leading reason for visiting a physician. It now ranks second behind essential hypertension, and ahead of diabetes, acute upper respiratory infection, anxiety, otitis media, acute bronchitis and asthma, which for the first time appeared among the leading diagnoses (see Table 1). Essential hypertension or high blood pressure continues to be the number one reason Canadians visit a physician accounting for 16.6 million visits; it showed the second largest increase over the 1995-2000 period increasing 24%.

“I am not surprised by the increase in visits for depression,” said Dr. Stanley Kutcher, Professor and head of the Department of Psychiatry at Dalhousie University. “The disorder is now better understood by physicians and the population in general. People tend to consult more as it does not carry the same stigma seen 10 or 15 years ago.”

“Despite this encouraging information, there are still too many people who do not consult a physician. There is still a great need for education on the causes and treatments of depressive disorders,” added Dr. Kutcher.

This thought is reiterated by the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health. "Almost three million Canadians have serious depression but less than one-third seeks help," stated Coleridge, Vice President, Communications, Education and Community Health. "This is most troubling because 80 – 90% of people with major depression can be treated successfully," he added. The consequences of not seeking help are serious. Eighty per cent of suicides are carried out by people who have depressive illness; Statistics Canada reports suicide is the 11th leading cause of death in Canada.

Since 1996, there has been a 63% increase in the number of prescriptions filled by patients for drugs used to treat depressive disorders, growing at an average rate of 13% per year. From 1999 to 2000, prescriptions for anti-depressants rose 15% to 15.8 million, representing a five-year high growth rate.

Paxil® was the most commonly prescribed anti-depressant in Canada in 2000, with approximately 3 million prescriptions filled in retail pharmacies. Paxil® , which ranks 8th among Canada’s most prescribed medications, belongs to a group of drugs known as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), which also includes Prozac®, Zoloft®, Celexa® and Effexor®.

CANADA’S TOP DISPENSED MEDICATIONS

In 2000, psychotherapeutics, which include anti-depressants, accounted for 32 million retail prescriptions, making it the second most dispensed class in Canada behind cardiovasculars. In 1995, psychotherapeutics was the third most dispensed class. Of Canada’s leading therapeutic classes in 2000 (see Table 2), anti-arthritics outpaced all others growing at a rate of 23%, while prescriptions for anti-infectives decreased for the second year in a row. In 1995, the anti-infectives class was ranked second, last year it was fourth.

Last year Canadians filled almost 291 million retail prescriptions (Table 3) at a total retail price of $11 billion. This is equivalent to nine prescriptions per person or 28 per family at an average price of $35.48 per prescription. In 1996, the average prescription price was $29.64 and the average number of prescriptions filled per person was eight. The most commonly dispensed drug in Canada in 2000 was Synthroid®, which is indicated for the treatment of hypothyroidism, (See Table 4). Medications for the treatment of cholesterol (Lipitor®), asthma (Flovent®) and high blood pressure (Altace®) showed the most significant growth among the top 20 dispensed drugs, growing 47%, 51% and 165%, respectively. In terms of sales, Losec®, a drug used for peptic ulcers, remained Canada’s top-selling drug in 2000. Losec is also the world’s number one selling drug. Canada’s top 20 selling drugs account for 27% of total spending by pharmacies and hospitals.

NEW INDUSTRY LEADER

Pharmacies and hospitals spent $9.5 billion on prescription medications last year, an increase of 14.6% over 1999 (Table 5). Spending has almost doubled since 1995 when it was $5.5 billion. Drug store purchases grew 15.8% (2000 compared to 1999) to reach $8.5 billion while hospital purchases grew 5% to reach $1 billion. Total drug store and hospital expenditures are expected to reach $16.6 billion in 2005.

The mergers and acquisitions that took place last year have lead to several changes in the ranking of Canada’s pharmaceutical companies. Pfizer, which acquired Warner-Lambert, is the new industry leader with sales of $892 million in 2000. The merger between Glaxo Wellcome and Kline Beecham created Canada’s second largest pharmaceutical company, GlaxoKline, with sales of $759 million. And Pharmacia & Upjohn’s union with Monsanto (Searle in Canada) created Pharmacia, the country’s eighth largest company. (See Table 6)

The top 50 Canadian companies accounted for approximately 95% of total expenditures of $9.5 billion.

Apotex is the largest generic manufacturer with sales of $458 million and is the sixth largest manufacturer in Canada. Generic manufacturers accounted for 35% of all prescriptions dispensed last year (Table 7), and 15% of drug store purchases. Those percentages have remained relatively stable over the last five years.

DRUGS LAUNCHED in 2000

There were 31 brand-name products launched in 2000, up from 27 the previous year. From 1994 to 1999, brand-name manufacturers introduced on average 40 new medications per year. The most successful product launch of last year, in terms of purchases by hospitals and pharmacies, was the diabetes medication Avandia® (Table 8). From its launch in March until December, its average monthly purchases by hospitals and pharmacies were $1.55 million. WORLD COMPARISONS

Canada is the world’s seventh largest market in terms of pharmacy sales (purchases by retail pharmacies) at US$5.5 billion and it is the second fastest growing market with 16% growth over 1999. Mexico led the way with sales growing 22% to reach US$4.9 billion. Pharmacy sales in the world’s 13 leading markets were US$221.4 billion in 2000, representing a 9% growth over 1999 (Table 9). Ranked in descending order, the world’s largest prescription drug markets are the U.S., Japan, Germany, France, Italy and the UK.

Click here for all tables

IMS HEALTH, Canada

IMS HEALTH is Canada’s leading provider of information solutions to the pharmaceutical and health care industries. IMS HEALTH, Canada is a subsidiary of IMS HEALTH Inc., the world’s leader in health information solutions with operations in over 100 countries. Additional information and previous press releases are available at www.imshealthcanada.com.

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Copyright© 2000 IMS HEALTH Canada. .

The field of psychiatry is rooted in German experimental psychology, racist eugenics theories, and anti-human materialistic opinions parading as scientific facts. The promotional activities and tremendous profits of the major drug companies play no small part in understanding the development and tremendous expansion of modern psychiatry. Psychiatry as a field is not the natural result of 100 years of sincere, dedicated, and honest investigation into solving the problems of Man, but rather, of millions upon millions of dollars spent in the ruthless promotion of a severely flawed field which has dedicatedly (and falsely) clothed itself in a flashy and exaggerated suit of "scientific fact". Modern psychiatric theories and methods deny everything comprising man's "inner" personality of thoughts, feelings, values, hopes, dreams, intentions, goals, and ultimately, life itself. Because without a human mind there would be no "life" at all - at least not for you or me.

I have lived thru this. More lawsuits coming, Great ! It is another MYTH ! at LEAST I ADDRESS THE CAUSES OF THE INSIDIOUS

Colin on

Vancouver, B.C

DRUG DEALS: THE BRAVE NEW WORLD OF PRESCRIPTION DRUGSTUESDAY, NOVEMBER 13th, 8:00 p.m.*Web Feature* *Special Screening in Toronto, November 7th - see below* Watch an excerpt from Drug Deals: The Brave New World of Prescription Drugs Are our regulatory agencies doing their best to ensure drug safety? Or are they buckling to corporate pressure to market lucrative new drugs before they are adequately tested? These are questions raised in DRUG DEALS: THE BRAVE NEW WORLD OF PRESCRIPTION DRUGS on THE NATURE OF THINGS with Suzuki, Tuesday, November 13th at 8:00 p.m. Filmmakers Elise Swerhone and Erna Buffie examine the case of 15-year-old Young, who was taking cisapride, a widely prescribed drug for intestinal problems when she suffered a cardiac arrest and died in March 2000. Less than a week after her death, the drug was withdrawn from the US market because of its potentially deadly side effects. Was cisapride a factor in 's death? If so, why was it on the market? "It's very difficult to measure the impact of the loss. But trying to investigate how and why she died has given us an opportunity to get something positive out of her death and prevent this from happening to others," said 's father, Terence Young. Through Young's search and interviews with industry insiders, the film offers an in-depth investigation into the influence of pharmaceutical companies on all aspects of drug research, approval and prescription. DRUG DEALS: THE BRAVE NEW WORLD OF PRESCRIPTION DRUGS is a co-production between the National Film Board of Canada (Joe Mac, producer) and Merit Motion Pictures (Merit Jensen Carr, producer) in association with CBC Television. Allder is executive producer of THE NATURE OF THINGS.This documentary will also be screened in Toronto on Nov. 7th (see below for details):Drug Deals: The Brave New World of Prescription DrugsISABEL BADER THEATREVICTORIA UNIVERSITY93 Street West Wednesday, November 7th at 7:00 p.m.Doors open 6:30 p.m.Hosted by Dr. SuzukiPanelists confirmed: Hoey, Editor, Canadian Medical Association JournalJim Turk, Executive Director, Canadian Association of University Teachers Terence Young

Eli Lilly & Prozac

View Current Signatures - Sign the Petition

The Office of the Surgeon General of the United States; The Department of Health & Human Services; The Federal Bureau of Investigations and The Justice Department We, the Undersigned, demand a Grand Jury Investigation into serious misconduct concerning Prozac on the part of Eli Lilly, the drug’s manufacturer. Specifically, we assert that Eli Lilly has known of and engaged in the suppression of the truth concerning the drug’s ability to cause suicide and suicidal ideation. We assert that Eli Lilly has knowingly and fraudulently concealed facts surrounding its drug’s deadly side effects. Documented findings of cover-ups supporting our demand include, but are not limited to, the following: · Eli Lilly has known Prozac (fluoxetine) causes akathisia, defined as an extreme subjective feeling of inner restlessness. This condition has long been known to be caused by antipsychotic drugs and recognized as leading to suicidal and homicidal-suicidal feelings. Lilly's own internal documents show the condition was identified in association with Prozac as early as 1978. · August 2, 1978, when only three trials were underway, minutes of a meeting of the Fluoxetine (Prozac) Project Team read: "There have been a fairly large number of reports of adverse reactions... Another depressed patient developed psychosis... Akathisia and restlessness were reported in some patients." A similar meeting held 10 days earlier stated, "…some patients have converted from severe depression to agitation within a few days; in one case the agitation was marked and the patient had to be taken off [the] drug." The minutes further state, "…in future studies the use of benzodiazepines to control the agitation will be permitted.” From that point on, Lilly's trial subjects were put on tranquillizers to get them over the akathisia experienced by some in the early days on the drug. Those who developed akathisia or who had any suicidal tendencies were excluded from the trial data on the basis that they would otherwise obscure the results of the drug's success in treating depression. · Lilly internal documents, May 25, 1984 – Upon examing Prozac trial results, the German licensing authority (the Bundes Gesundheit Amt (BGA)) issued a letter stating: "During the treatment with the preparation [Prozac], 16 suicide attempts were made, two of these with success. As patients with a risk of suicide were excluded from the studies, it is probable that this high proportion can be attributed to an action of the preparation [Prozac]." · January 1985, the Germans told Lilly that they would not license the drug, citing "suicidal risk" as one of the reasons for their decision. Lilly's scientists continued trying to persuade the BGA to grant a license, but focused most of their efforts on the US. By August 1989, it was clear to Lilly that the BGA would demand that Prozac carry a warning to General Practitioners (GPs) that they should be aware of the risk of suicide unless they gave patients sedation along with Prozac. A warning of a "risk of suicide" finally went on the German package insert in 1992. It also stated, "For his/her own safety, the patient must be sufficiently observed, until the antidepressive effect of Fluctin [Prozac] sets in. Taking an additional sedative may be necessary." · During the licensing process in the US Lilly did not tell the FDA of the German concerns. · Lilly has repeatedly attempted to suggest suicidality reflects patient’s disorders. Yet, Lilly’s own scientist, Heiligenstein, wrote in an internal memo on September 14, 1990: "We feel caution should be exercised in a statement that 'suicidality and hostile acts in patients taking Prozac reflect the patient's disorder and not a causal relationship to Prozac'. Post-marketing reports [reports from GPs of suicides and violence in patients on the drug] are increasingly fuzzy and we have assigned, 'Yes, reasonably related', on several reports. · This Heiligenstein memo was written two years after Prozac was granted a license by the FDA, and just months after a study report by Teicher, Cole and Carol Glod was published. According to the study, 6 patients with a history of depression became violently suicidal in a way that surprised themselves and their doctors while on the drug. The report noted that suicidal thoughts occurred within days or weeks of going on Prozac, or of having the dosage increased beyond a certain level, and that such thoughts disappeared when the patient stopped taking the drug. Lilly insisted that Prozac did not cause akathesia; the company asserted that the link between akathesia and suicide is questionable. · Lilly's internal documents of that time show that public criticism was threatening the drug’s success. Some were coming out of the UK. · An internal memo from Leigh , one of Lilly’s chief scientists, stated, "Anything that happens in the UK can threaten this drug [Prozac] in the US and worldwide…" "We are now expending enormous efforts fending off attacks because of 1) relationship to murder and 2) inducing suicidal ideation [suicidal behaviour].” · Another memo from ran: "I am concerned about reports I get re UK attitude toward Prozac safety. Leber [Dr Leber of the FDA] suggested a few minutes ago we use CSM [british Committee on Safety of Medicines] database to compare Prozac aggression and suicidal ideation with other antidepressants in the UK. Although he is a fan of Prozac and believes a lot of this is garbage, he is clearly a political creature and will have to respond to pressures. I hope [probably a Lilly employee, but not identified fully in the memo] realizes that Lilly can go down the tubes if we lose Prozac, and just one event in the UK can cost us that.” (All points outlined above are supported by documented findings published in The Guardian; “They said it was safe”; Boseley; October 30, 1999) FURTHER SUPPORTING EVIDENCE: 1.As cited above, In 1990, Teicher et al, of Harvard Medical School, reported six cases of "intense suicidal preoccupation" in patients who had been prescribed the drug. According to the authors, "none of these patients had ever experienced a similar state during treatment with any other psychotropic drug." (American Journal of Psychiatry, February 1990) 2. Dr. Graham, chief of the FDA's Epidemiology Branch, wrote on Sept. 11, 1990, that Lilly's data on suicide and Prozac, and data garnered from a study by Drs. Maurizio Fava and Jerrold Rosenbaum of Massachusetts General Hospital (citing no significant difference in "suicidal ideation" in patients treated with fluoxetine compared to those receiving other antidepressants) was insufficient to prove that Prozac was safe. In an internal FDA memo, Graham wrote: "Because of apparent large-scale underreporting, the firm's analysis cannot be considered as proving that fluoxetine and violent behavior are unrelated." Rosenbaum's objectivity has been questioned. Not only was his study on Prozac and suicide criticized by at least two sets of researchers as well as the FDA, but also documents obtained by The Boston Globe illustrate Rosenbaum's questionable relationship to Lilly. He has served as a Prozac researcher and sat on a marketing advisory panel for Lilly before Prozac was launched. (Leah R. Garnett; “As drug gets remade, concerns about suicides surface”; Boston Globe, 5/7/2000) 3. In September 1991, an advisory committee of the FDA cleared Prozac. “Suicidal ideation" and "violent behaviours" were added to the label as "reported, but not proven." ( Bourguignon MD; “Problems with Prozac”; http://www.camtech.net.au/malam/reports/prozac.htm) 4. In 1994, Healy (then consultant to Eli Lilly) published an article entitled "The Fluoxetine and Suicide Controversy, a Review of the Evidence” in which he stated that antidepressants, Prozac included, can indeed induce suicidal behaviour. (CNS Drugs, March 1994) 5. The FDA's adverse event reporting system (AERS) reveals 28,623 Prozac adverse events (ADEs) (Garnered from data gathered via Freedom of Information Act): · 63% of 1,734 deaths reported - 1,089 - were attributed to suicides. · Suicide attempts numbered 1,885. · Over 10% of the total 28,623 ADEs reported were attributed to suicides and suicide attempts. 6. By the Government Accounting Office’s own admissions, reported FDA Adverse Drug Events only reflect an estimated 1%, to a conservative 10% of actual events, and “are unlikely to be representative of the much larger number of unreported events.” (“Adverse Drug Events – the Magnitude of Health Risk is Uncertain Because of Limited Incidence Date”, Jan. 2000; GAO/HEHS-00-21) Given this lack of actual data, Prozac numbers could be projected to be in the area of 10,890 deaths by suicide and 18,850 suicide attempts at 10% reporting. At 1% reporting, 108,900 suicides and 188,500 suicide attempts could be projected. 7. Recent studies reveal over 50,000 deaths related to Prozac and estimate that between 7% and 10% of individuals exposed to Prozac will have some kind of adverse reaction. (The Boston Globe; "As drug gets remade, concerns about suicides surface"; Leah R. Garnett, Globe Staff; May 7, 2000; © Copyright 2000 Globe Newspaper Company) 8. According to internal documents and other documented material made available to The Boston Globe, (Leah R. Garnett, Globe Staff; “As drug gets remade, concerns about suicides surface”; The Boston Globe, 5/7/2000): · In 1990, Lilly scientists were pressured by corporate executives to alter records on physician experiences with Prozac, changing mentions of suicide attempts to "overdose" and suicidal thoughts to "depression." In an electronic communiqué (obtained by author Dr. ph Glenmullen, Prozac Backlash) from Claude Bouchy, a Lilly employee in Germany, to three Lilly corporate executives at Lilly’s Indianapolis headquarters, dated November 13, 1990: Bouchy says he and a colleague "have problems with the directions our safety people are getting from the corporate group (Drug Epidemiology Unit) and requesting that we change the identification of events as they are reported by the physicians. . ." He further reported, “Our safety staff is requested to change the event term `suicide attempt' [as reported by the physician] to `overdose.' " He added, “...it is requested that we change . . . `suicidal ideation' to `depression.' " He informed his US Lilly colleagues: "I do not think I could explain to the BGA, to a judge, to a reporter or even to my family why we would do this especially on the sensitive issue of suicide and suicidal ideation. At least not with the explanations that have been given to our staff so far." · Three years before Prozac received approval by the US Food and Drug Administration in late 1987, the German BGA had such serious reservations about Prozac's safety that it refused to approve the antidepressant based on Lilly's studies showing that previously non-suicidal patients who took the drug had a fivefold higher rate of suicides and suicide attempts than those on older antidepressants, and a threefold higher rate than those taking placebos. · Lilly's own figures indicate that 1 in 100 previously non-suicidal patients who took the drug in early clinical trials developed a severe form of anxiety and agitation called akathisia, causing them to attempt or commit suicide during the studies. · A patent for a new Prozac (US Patent no. 5,708,035), R-fluoxetine, expected to be marketed by Lilly beginning in 2002, (as of the 2000 Globe report) states the new version will not produce several existing side effects including "akathisia, suicidal thoughts, and self-mutilation…one of its more significant side effects." This is the same effect Lilly has repeatedly denied to have occurred in any substantial way in some 200 lawsuits against them over the past decade. Most of the suits were settled out of court and the terms kept confidential. · Lilly will pay Sepracor, Inc., who holds the patent for the new Prozac, an upfront payment and license fee of $20 million and an additional $70 million based on the progression of the drug. Lilly will have exclusive world rights to the drug, will be responsible for development, product manufacturing, regulatory submissions, and marketing and sales – Sepracor to receive royalties according to a Sepracor press release dated April 13. · Dr. Teicher, whose early 1990’s studies linked Prozac to akathisia and suicide, is a co-inventor of the new Prozac, along with J. Barberich, the CEO of Sepracor Inc., (a Marlborough drug company), and W. Young. They filed their patent in August 1993, the same year Teicher published "Antidepressant Drugs and the Emergence of Suicidal Tendencies”, which concluded that patients on Prozac were at least three times more likely to become suicidal than those on older antidepressants. (Journal Drug Safety) · Figures in a 1984 Lilly document indicated that akathisia, the severe agitation that can lead to suicide, occurs in at least 1 percent of patients, a level considered a "frequent" event, and as such must be disclosed in a company's product literature and package inserts. But there is no such disclosure in Prozac's US literature. Akathisia is listed in Lilly's US product literature, but as an infrequent event in Prozac users. No mention is made of its potential relationship to suicide. In conclusion, we believe the FDA and Eli Lilly must be held accountable as to their negligent, fraudulent and cover-up activities concerning this deadly drug. Given the above cited findings, we firmly believe that it is only through a Grand Jury Investigation that the rights of the unsuspecting American consuming public can be best served, that unconscionable future suffering may be averted, and many lives saved. We, the undersigned, most earnestly request that a thorough investigation into Eli Lilly’s and the FDA’s practices concerning Prozac, both past and present, be vigorously pursued as per the powers vested in you to do so. Countless innocent lives depend on it… “All truth passes through three stages: First it is Ridiculed. Second, it is Violently Opposed. Third, it is Accepted as being Self-Evident.” - Arthur Schopenhauer (1778-1860) Respectfully Yours, Sincerely, The Undersigned

View Current Signatures

The Eli Lilly & Prozac Petition to The Office of the Surgeon General of the United States; The Department of Health & Human Services; The Federal Bureau of Investigations and The Justice Department was created by SSRI medications and written by Collissa Weber, and Sandi Payne. This petition is hosted here at http://www.petitiononline.com/petition.html as a public service. There is no express or implied endorsement of this petition by Artifice, Inc. or our sponsors. The petition scripts are created by Mike Wheeler at Artifice, Inc. For Technical Support please use our simple Petition Help form.

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Vickery & WaldnerPolicy Statement Regarding SSRI Wrongful Death Litigation

Vickery & Waldner Policy Statement Regarding SSRI Wrongful Death Litigation

Our website contains information which we hope will be helpful to members of the public. Many of the people who access this website have had something tragic happen either to themselves or a family member while taking an anti-depressant, such as Prozac, Zoloft, or Paxil. Frequently they ask us about litigation. It is indeed rare that we ever encourage them to litigate with the drug companies. There are many reasons for this. Trial lawyers are the gatekeepers of the civil justice system. Our responsibility–which we take very seriously–is to discourage litigation in all but the most egregious cases. Involving yourself in a lawsuit with defendants with unlimited resources is a mammoth undertaking, sapping most of your emotional, spiritual, and economic resources. In the face of a tragedy, these resources are already seriously depleted. Our experience is that the pharmaceutical companies will do virtually anything to protect their multi-billion dollar drugs. When you sue them, their lawyers will open every closet door in your life and microscopically examine every skeleton. Every aspect of your life–a spouse’s drinking problem, a daughter’s abortion, problems at work–will be blamed for what their drug might have caused. It’s not a bit overstating the rigors of litigation to tell you that the process itself just might be worse than the tragedy that caused the filing of the claim. The pharmaceutical industry and its lawyers have been extremely successful in making these cases the legal equivalency of nuclear war.

We are not against the manufacturing and the responsible marketing of anti-depressants. Properly prescribed and monitored by well-informed physicians, these drugs undoubtedly can and do help many people. But, in our opinion, there’s a flaw in the way they’re marketed, both to the doctors who prescribe them and the consumers who take them. In a significant number of patients, these drugs "activate" them, that is they cause a condition of being jittery and "bouncing off walls". They cause a condition known as "akathisia" which the patient usually experiences as feeling as if he/she wants to "jump out of my skin". In some of those patients, these physical reactions trigger impulsive violence and suicide. The drug companies know this–it was seen all through their clinical trials with their drugs. In other countries (unlike the U.S. Food and Drug Administration) the agency that approves the drugs and their warnings does its own research. In some of those countries the drug companies are required to give more explicit warnings about the increased risk of violence and/or suicide. No such warning is required by our FDA here in the U.S. Our FDA does no research on the drugs–it relies totally on the information given to it by the drug companies. And its safety standards are "minimum safeguards" for the general populace. Unfortunately, the frequency of violence and suicide is either misreported or underreported.

The problem is that the drug companies know that there is a direct correlation between their warnings and the frequency with which physicians – particularly the non-mental health doctors who comprise the bulk of their market – will prescribe their drugs. The more side effects there are–and the worse they are–the less likely the physicians are to write the prescription. Tragically, it’s all about money.

The bottom line is that even though a patient took one of these anti-depressants and hurt themself or others, and even though the drug companies knew of this problem and didn’t warn U.S. consumers or their doctors about it, we recommend litigation to less than 5% of those individuals and families who inquire about the possibility. The deck is stacked overwhelmingly in favor of this giant industry, and tragically, the civil justice system usually collapses under the weight.

Notwithstanding this caution, however, we remain willing to prosecute meritorious cases involving wrongful death or serious, permanent, physical injuries.

If you wish to report an adverse drug reaction to the FDA, you can click here to go directly to MedWatch, the FDA's medical products reporting program.

SSRI Wrongful Death CasesVickery & Waldner's policy statement regarding SSRI wrongful death litigation

You will need Adobe Acrobat Reader to access these files. If you do not have it, you can download it here.

Statistical Appendix to Justiceseekers.comA Study in Contradictions

PAXIL

Kline's Latest Motion is Denied Judge Beaman Denies Kline's Motion for Judgment as a Matter of Law or For a New trial

Tobin Verdict

Tobin Judgment

Press ReleaseJury says Paxil is to blame for deadly shooting spree---awards $8 million to family

Judge Beaman's Daubert Opinion Judge denies Kline's motion to exclude testimony of plaintiff's causation experts

Tobin v. Kline Beecham Pharmaceuticals, Inc.Two days on Paxil yields four deaths

Healy General Causation ReportHow the SSRI drugs like Prozac, Paxil, and Zoloft trigger violent or suicidal acts for some patients. Report by well known neuro-psychopharmacologist, and author of 'The Antidepressant Era,' Dr. Healy.

Paxil Homicide/Suicide Case Cleared For TrialTrial begins May 21 in Cheyenne.

Eoff v. Glaxo Kline, et al. Combination of Paxil, Celexa and Remeron without washout periods triggers homicide/suicide

PROZAC

Cassidy v. Eli Lilly Abortive Suicide Attempt Devastates Family

A Boston Globe Editorial The Prozac Question

Forsyths Allege FraudSuit Alleges Second Prozac Verdict Also Tainted

Prozac, Zoloft, Mayhem, and Suicide Teicher & Cole---Together Again and Still Sounding the Alarm

Prozac Backlash by Dr. ph Glenmullen Book Review by Andy Vickery

"They Said It Was Safe" By Bosely of The Guardian

Blowers v. Eli Lilly Another Teenaged Boy Hangs Himself on SSRI Drug

ZOLOFT

Regina v. Hawkins Australian Judge Finds Zoloft Cause of Murder

Declaration of Cole, M.D. The Pioneer of Psychopharmacology Speaks

"He Never Said Good-Bye" The Story of Matt

Zoloft Suicide: Causal Mechanisms The Healy Report

Motion to Appoint Experts Why doesn't Pfizer want a neutral expert to advise judge on who is really peddling junk science?

v. Pfizer Memorandum in Support of Plaintiffs' Motion to Appoint Expert(s)

v. Pfizer Judge says overpromotion can nullify warnings

Omdahl v. Pfizer The Tragic Deaths of Phil and Brynn Hartman

ADDERALL

Ehlis v. Shire Richwood Pharmaceuticals, Inc. "This is the most severe case [of drug-induced psychosis] that's ever occured."

Last Updated on 8/20/01

© 2001 Vickery & Waldner, L.L.P. All rights reserved.