The Las Vegas Pill
Posted : July 25, 2005 at 9:43 am [IST]
Side effects of medication have surprised me and might have shocked many, perhaps you too sometimes. In good old days, whenever, we visited a doctor, he would be prescribing certain compounds. The compounders in the dispensary would prepare that, perhaps so were they called by that nomenclature. So the drug used to be customized ones. We saw the death of the practice over the year.
Today, doctors prescribe only reputed company manufactured drugs. And I feel each of these drugs have some constituents in composition that may cause some side effect, though any qualified doctor will deny that. It means, the doctor believe that the product development of the specific drugs have reached so great a maturity that error is not possible. I am reminded of the grades, coatings, and materials of metal cutting tool inserts in machining industry. Different companies provide different brands to do the same jobs, but the results during the real applications are different, sometimes even catastrophic too. I am giving below a news story that will be interesting. It appeared in technology section of ‘The economist’ of July 16,2005.
When Pfizer tested a new angina drug, male volunteers noted an unusual consequences- they were getting frequent erections. The compound UK-92, 480, was renamed ‘Viagara’ by the pharmaceutical giant and rest, as they say, is history.
New researches have found that a class of drugs used to treat Parkinson’s disease also has side effects, albeit of a less desirable nature. It causes a small but significant number of patients to become compulsive gamblers, alcoholics, gluttons, and sex pests.
Are the famous Las Vegas promoters of so-called entertainment industry of USA listening? Are they behind this drug? Will they exploit it and use in same way as Pfizer did?
And then the question- what can be the side effects of these many brands of packaged drugs for the same decease from many drug makers?
- Indra
Category: IRS in US '05 |
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