Posted by SLS on May 31, 2009, at 7:26:01
In reply to Re: Are the drugs that we're taking killing us?, posted by Andy Behrman on May 31, 2009, at 2:48:17
> Apparently, you didn't read the article on the link. Maybe you should read it again.
>
> Or, as Sonia Choi, the spokesman for BMS was quoted as saying, "I wasn't aware that akathasia was a side effect of Abilify."
>
> The more important point is that it's a horrible side effect, extremely common and doctors are turning their backs on the problem and continuing to prescribe it. Sure, it's there. In fine print. But when a large percentage of consumers suffer from the side effect, don't you think it's time to think about the safety of Abilify?
>
> Have you experienced the side effects of Abilify?
>
If you can find fault with the way Abilify has been marketed and dispensed, then I think that is where you ought to focus your attention. This is not the fault of the drug itself. The drug is what it is. What it is, is a lifesaver for me and many other people. The drug is unique and cannot be replaced by anything else in the current pharmacopia. Abiliy has side effects, some of them - akathisia specifically - that are due to this drug's unique pharmacology. It is this uniqueness that is the reason Abilify is chosen to be used in the first place. There is a significant chance that anyone starting Abilify will experience mild to moderate akathisia in the beginning. There is a good chance that if it appears, it will disappear within two weeks on its own. There is less of a chance that it will be so severe as to require discontinuation. However, this is a calculated risk, and one that is usually very easy to justify taking. This akathisia is not irreversible as would be tardive dyskinesia, which Abilify seems to be singularly exempt from producing among the neuroleptics.Abilify is not a demon drug. There are plenty "worse" if you are looking at side effect severity and irreversibility alone as criteria to forcibly remove a drug from the public healthcare system.
- Scott
poster:SLS
thread:898245
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20090531/msgs/898594.html