Drug safety- FDA concern about black box warning

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Dear Members,Wagner et al carried

out a retrospective study in the United States to assess the prescribing

frequency for 216 medications with black box warnings, and to evaluate

adherence with the warning’s recommendations. Medications with a black box

warning had been prescribed to more than 40% of the patients. Additionally,

prescribers’ adherence rate to the warning criteria ranged from, 1% to 50%

depending on the medication.(Wagner AK, Chan KA,

Dashevsky I, et al. FDA drug prescribing warnings: is the black box half empty

or half full? Pharmacoepidemiol Drug Safety. 2006;15:369-386.)Tarun Wadhwa