Problems with drugs

Why is Sonotron Therapy Receiving An Intense Interest?

problems-with-drugs-01 “In many instances the statistical probability of harm to the patient may not be much less than the statistical probability of benefit. Decreased drug use would lead to a reduction in the prevalence of drug-induced illness.” This statement was extracted from ‘Clinical Problems With Drugs’ a book written by Drs Cluff, Caranasos and Stewart.

From my review of other relevant articles, I am pleased to append the following extracts:

“Non steroidal anti inflammatory drugs, the treatment of choice for all forms of arthritis, may cause more problems than they solve.”

“Arthritis is one of those classic examples where medicine not only does not sort out the problem but creates a new one besides. In developed countries, an estimated 8 per cent of the population suffers from rheumatoid arthritis and 12 per cent from osteoarthritis, making arthritis in all its forms one of the most common diseases. Generally, doctors turn to NSAIDs as a first port of call.”

“Standard treatment for rheumatoid arthritis doesn’t have a particularly good track record. A batch of English rheumatologists tracked 112 RA patients receiving “aggressive” drug treatment over 22 years. The result? More than half either died or became severely disabled. The authors concluded that it was “fallacious” to believe that arthritic drugs of any sort cause a remission in patients. Stated plainly, that means that none of these drugs does any good in stopping the disease from progressing.”

“This is backed up by another study which tracked 75 patients over nine years. By 1984, 20 had died, and 93 per cent of the survivors had lost “significant functional capacity” i.e., the ability to grip well. When they were first enrolled in the study, most had been reasonably ambulatory, with 85 per cent still at work.”

As for osteoarthritis, NSAIDs have no advantage over simple analgesics like aspirin. A recent study in the New England Journal of Medicine (11 July 1991) of 204 patients found that large (2400 mg) and small (1200mg) daily doses of ibuprofen, the most popular American NSAID, worked about the same as high daily doses (4000 mg) of acetaminophen in controlling pain and inflammation. The study, said an editorial in the same issue of the Journal, “challenges the reflexive prescription” of nonsteroidal anti inflammatory drugs for osteoarthritis.

As for osteoarthritis, the Dept. of Rheumatology, King’s College Hospital (Dulwich), London SE22 8PT, reported that, “Our results do not show long-term benefits from the use of NSAIDs in OA and the majority of patients had persisting pain and disability despite therapy.” It was the conclusion of the researchers as published (in Rheumatology 2000; 39: 1095-1101) entitled, ‘The long-term effects of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs in osteoarthritis of the knee: a randomized placebo-controlled trial’.”

“Modern medicine’s treatment of OA usually makes the problem worse. NSAID use simply speeds the progress of the disease (Lancet, 1985; ii: 11-3; Am J Mrf, 2987; 83: Suppl 5A: 29-34), largely because NSAIDs inhibit cartilage repair and speed up cartilage destruction (J Rheumatol, 1982; 9: 3-5).”

“Although the benefits of NSAIDs are uncertain, one thing is for sure: they are exceedingly dangerous. According to Drs Peter M. Brooks and Richard O. Day, both Australian rheumatologists writing in The New England Journal of Medicine about NSAIDs (13 June 1991): “The gastrointestinal effects of NSAIDs include gastric erosion, peptic ulcer formation and perforation, major upper gastrointestinal haemorrhage, and inflammation and change in the permeability of the intestine and lower bowel.”

“Brooks and Day quote another study showing that the risks of being hospitalized due to gastrointestinal adverse effects are “seven times” that of patients not given the NSAIDs. “These results led these investigators to suggest that in the United States the syndrome of NSAID associated gastropathy accounts for at least 2600 deaths and 20,000 hospitalizations each year in patients with rheumatoid arthritis alone.” These statistics could be very conservative; the Food and Drug Administration estimates that 200,000 cases of gastric bleeding occur each year, with 10,000 to 20,000 deaths.”

“In the UK, some 4000 people die each year from taking NSAIDs double the number of deaths from asthma.”

“Brooks and Day say that the elderly or those with a history of peptic ulcers, are at particular risk of gastrointestinal complications, ‘including death’. They go on to conclude that NSAIDs are the direct cause of 20 to 30 per cent of all cases of complications following peptic ulcers. (Dr Christina Scott Moncrieff, writing recently in GP newspaper, estimates that up to 80 per cent of such deaths are NSAID related.)”

“Because NSAIDs reduce pain, particularly at high doses, they also mask any warnings that anything is wrong. ‘For many patients, the first indication they have an ulcer is a life threatening complication,’ wrote Dr Moncrieff.

“Besides ulcers, other studies have shown that ibuprofen (sold over the counter in America because of its supposed safety record) can cause colitis, and indomethacin, naproxen and a sustained release preparation of ketoprofen may cause perforations of the colon.”

“NSAIDs can also cause blurred or diminished vision, Parkinson’s Disease, hair and fingernail loss, and also damage the liver and kidneys. Doctors from Beth Israel and Harvard Medical School and elsewhere reported seven cases of “significant hepatitis” and one death from using diclofenac sodium. Symptoms developed within several weeks of starting the drug. One patient died despite early withdrawal from the drug.”

“Interestingly, the Department of Internal Medicine at the University of Heidelberg in West Germany noted in the Lancet (2 June 1990) that arthritis patients have had false positive results in tests for hepatitis, possibly indicating the effect of NSAIDs on the liver.”

“In 1986, the Food and Drug Administration took phenyl butazone and oxyphenbutazone off the American market after they were found to have caused numerous deaths, and to have severe effects on bone marrow and to kill off white blood cells.”

“Medicine has responded to the dangers of NSAIDs by giving arthritis patients another, anti-ulcer drug. Drugs that have been used include the so called H2 antagonists and now a drug called misoprostol, which has been shown in tests to prevent gastric and duodenal ulcers and is now all the medical rage. However, at least one doctor wrote to the Lancet (20 April 1991) to say that a patient on ketoprofen and misoprostol ended up having a severe haemorrhage without warning, the result of a bleeding duodenal ulcer.”

Print This Page

« Previous Page | Next Page »