USA: Antidepressants Under Scrutiny Over Efficacy

Sweeping Overview Suggests Suppression of Negative Data Has Distorted View of Drugs By David Armstrong and Keith J. Winstein NEW YORK (Wall Street Journal), January 17, 2008; The effectiveness of a dozen popular antidepressants has been exaggerated by selective publication of favorable results, according to a review of unpublished data submitted to the Food and Drug Administration. As a result, doctors and patients are getting a distorted view of how well blockbuster antidepressants like Wyeth's Effexor and Pfizer Inc.'s Zoloft really work, researchers asserted in this week's New England Journal of Medicine. Since the overwhelming amount of published data on the drugs show they are effective, doctors unaware of the unpublished data are making inappropriate prescribing decisions that aren't in the best interest of their patients, according to researchers led by Erick Turner, a psychiatrist at Oregon Health & Science University. Sales of antidepressants total about $21 billion a year, according to IMS Health. ------------------------------------------------------------------ ACCENTUATE THE POSITIVE A review of research submitted to the FDA: • Of 74 studies reviewed, 38 were judged to be positive by the FDA. All but one were published, researchers said. • Most of the studies found to have negative or questionable results were not published, researchers found. Source: The New England Journal of Medicine ----------------------------------------------------------------- To see full WSJ report, click here © 2008 Dow Jones, Inc.