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Planning Pregnancy May Cut Birth Defects
Posted 6 Apr 2012 by Drugs.com
FRIDAY, April 6 – Women who'd like to become pregnant – especially those who are taking medications for chronic conditions – may need to add something to their to-do list: Plan, plan, plan. That's because some medications are known to cause birth defects. Avoiding all medications during pregnancy is not always possible, however, and sometimes not taking a prescribed medication could be harmful, too. "The best thing for women to do, all women, is to plan their pregnancy," said Dr. Diane Ashton, deputy medical director for the March of Dimes. "Women should speak with their physician about their plans to become pregnant. If they have a condition that requires medication, that's an ideal time to switch to medications that have less risk, if necessary. And, it gives time for the condition to be stabilized." About 120,000 babies born each year in the United States – or about one of every ... Read more
Related support groups: Accutane, Claravis, Isotretinoin, Amnesteem, Sotret
Cancer Patients Should Ask Doctors to Use Simple Terms
Posted 28 Sep 2011 by Drugs.com
WEDNESDAY, Sept. 28 – Cancer patients are often faced with many difficult-to-understand treatment choices that can have serious side effects and even mean the difference between life and death. That's why it's crucial that patients insist doctors use plain language in explaining the options, advised Angela Fagerlin, an associate professor of internal medicine at the University of Michigan Medical School and a researcher at the U-M Comprehensive Cancer Center. "People are making life and death decisions that may affect their survival and they need to know what they're getting themselves into. Cancer treatments and tests can be serious. Patients need to know what kind of side effects they might experience as a result of the treatment they undergo," Fagerlin said in a university news release. She and her colleagues outlined a number of tips to help patients get the information they need ... Read more
Related support groups: Cancer, Methotrexate, Provera, Breast Cancer, Lupron, Accutane, Depo-Provera, Prostate Cancer, Tamoxifen, Femara, Arimidex, Lupron Depot, Medroxyprogesterone, Claravis, Gleevec
Severe Acne May Up Suicide Risk: Study
Posted 11 Nov 2010 by Drugs.com
THURSDAY, Nov. 11 – Severe acne may significantly increase suicide risk, and patients taking isotretinoin (Accutane) for the skin condition should be monitored for at least a year after treatment ends, Swedish researchers report. "Treatment with Accutane actually entails an increased risk of suicide attempts," said lead researcher Anders Sundstrom, a pharmacoepidemiologist at the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm. However, depression caused by the acne, rather than the drug itself, is probably the culprit, he said. The risk of suicide is very small, Sundstrom stressed. There could be one suicide attempt among 2,300 people taking Accutane, and that assumes that the drug caused the suicide attempt, he said. For the study, published online Nov. 12 in BMJ, Sundstrom's team collected data on 5,756 people treated for severe acne with Accutane from 1980 to 1989. The average age of the men was ... Read more
Related support groups: Acne, Accutane, Claravis, Isotretinoin, Amnesteem, Sotret
Acne, Psoriasis Meds Don't Raise Fracture Risk
Posted 17 May 2010 by Drugs.com
MONDAY, May 17 – Patients who take drugs like Accutane and Soriatane for acne and psoriasis don't seem to be at higher risk of breaking bones, a new study finds, even though similar dietary supplements have been linked to fractures. Accutane and Soriatane – known generically as isotretinoin and acitretin – are similar to vitamin A, which has been linked to broken bones when taken in high doses. The drugs themselves, which are used to treat acne and psoriasis, have been connected to lower levels of bone density. In the new study, researchers at Aarhus University Hospital in Denmark studied 124,655 patients with broken bones from the year 2000. They compared them to people of the same age and sex who didn't have broken bones. The researchers found that the drugs didn't boost the risk of broken bones, even at high doses. The study appears in the May issue of the Archives of Dermatology. ... Read more
Related support groups: Accutane, Claravis, Isotretinoin, Amnesteem, Soriatane, Sotret, Acitretin, Soriatane CK
FDA Medwatch Alert: Accutane (isotretinoin)
Posted 28 Mar 2007 by Drugs.com
[Posted 03/28/2007] FDA notified consumers and healthcare professionals of a special webpage launched to warn about the dangers of buying isotretinoin online. Isotretinoin is a drug approved for the treatment of severe acne that does not respond to other forms of treatment. If the drug is improperly used, it can cause severe side effects, including birth defects. Serious mental health problems have also been reported with isotretinoin use. The new webpage, http://www.fda.gov/buyonline/accutane, will appear in online search results for Accutane (isotretinoin) or one of the generic versions, Amnesteem, Claravis, and Sotret. The webpage warns that the drug should only be taken under the close supervision of a physician or a pharmacist, and provides links to helpful information. The new webpage is in addition to special safeguards put in place by FDA and manufacturers of isotretinoin to ... Read more
FDA Medwatch Alert: Accutane and generic isotretinoin
Posted 6 Oct 2006 by Drugs.com
[Posted 10/06/2006] FDA and the iPLEDGE program notified healthcare professionals and patients of an update to iPLEDGE, a risk management program to reduce the risk of fetal exposure to isotretinoin, that will eliminate one element of the program, the 23 day lock-out period for males and females of non-child bearing potential. This change does not affect female patients of child-bearing potential. [October 06, 2006 - Letter - iPLEDGE Program] [October 06, 2006 - Drug Information Page - FDA] [October 06, 2006 - Questions and Answers - FDA] Read more
Related support groups: Accutane
FDA Medwatch Alert: Isotretinoin - Accutane and generic isotretinoin
Posted 6 Oct 2006 by Drugs.com
[Posted 10/06/2006] FDA and the iPLEDGE program notified healthcare professionals and patients of an update to iPLEDGE, a risk management program to reduce the risk of fetal exposure to isotretinoin, that will eliminate one element of the program, the 23 day lock-out period for males and females of non-child bearing potential. This change does not affect female patients of child-bearing potential. [October 06, 2006 - Letter - iPLEDGE Program] [October 06, 2006 - Drug Information Page - FDA] [October 06, 2006 - Questions and Answers - FDA] Read more
Related support groups: Accutane
FDA Medwatch Alert: Accutane and generic isotretinoin
Posted 12 Aug 2005 by Drugs.com
[Posted 08/12/2005] FDA notified healthcare professionals and patients of the approval of a strengthened risk management program, called iPLEDGE, for Accutane and generic isotretinoin. The strengthened program requires registration of wholesalers, prescribers, pharmacies and patients who agree to accept specific responsibilities designed to minimize pregnancy exposures in order to distribute, prescribe, dispense and use Accutane. In addition to approving the iPLEDGE program, FDA has approved changes to the existing warnings, patient information and informed consent document so that patients and prescribers can better identify and manage the risks of psychiatric symptoms and depression before and after prescribing isotretinoin.. Read more
Related support groups: Accutane
FDA Medwatch Alert: Accutane (isotretinoin)
Posted 1 Nov 2002 by Drugs.com
FDA and Roche revised the WARNINGS: Psychiatric Disorders, Boxed CONTRAINDICATIONS AND WARNINGS, DOSAGE AND ADMINISTRATION, and PRECAUTIONS: Drug Interactions sections of the prescribing information. Changes in pediatric labeling were made to the CLINICAL PHARMACOLOGY: Special Patient Populations: Pediatric Patients, WARNINGS: Skeletal: Bone Mineral Density, and PRECAUTIONS: Pediatric Use: sections.Aggressive and/or violent behaviors have been added to the list of events that Accutane may cause, based on post-marketing safety reports. No mechanism of action has been established for these events. A new table has been added to clarify those circumstances where pregnancy tests and Accutane Qualification Stickers are applicable. Information specific to pediatric patients has been added based on the results of recent studies conducted in this patient population. A statement has been added ... Read more
Related support groups: Accutane
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