Tuesday, November 25, 2003

Study questions benefits of costly schizophrenia drug
VA Research Communications Service press release - "A study at 17 Veterans Affairs (VA) hospitals comparing an older, pennies-a-day schizophrenia drug with a newer, far more expensive one found little advantage to the high-ticket drug. The researchers, who report their findings in the November 26 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association, say this is the first long-term, rigorously designed experimental study of the newer drug, which boasts U.S. sales of $2 billion annually. The researchers compared haloperidol, one of an older class of schizophrenia drugs called typical antipsychotics, to olanzapine, the most expensive among the newer atypical antipsychotics. Used alone, the older medications are more likely to cause troubling side effects such as tremors and twitches. But the study had doctors prescribe haloperidol as they would ideally in actual practice-accompanied from the outset by another drug, benztropine, to minimize side effects."  
  

Suicidal Minority Teens Lack Adult Support
Center for the Advancement of Health press release at InteliHealth - "Low-income black and Latino teens who report suicidal thoughts or suicide attempts also say they have few adults in their lives with whom they can discuss personal problems, according to a new study. Those who attempted suicide were more than twice as likely as non-attempters 'to feel that they had no one to count on,' say Lydia O'Donnell, Ed.D., and colleagues of the Education Development Center Inc. Their findings appear in the American Journal of Health Behavior."  
  

Harvard Mental Health Letter Cites Lack of Testing as Reason for Caution on Antidepressants For Children
PR Newswire press release at Yahoo - "As the number of children taking antidepressants continues to grow, so does the international debate regarding the effects these drugs have on children. In the December issue of Harvard Mental Health Letter, the editors summarize the findings of leading reports and examine the real issues behind the topic of children and antidepressants. The subject remains controversial. Parents and physicians should take into account certain concerns. According to Harvard Mental Health Letter, most psychiatric drugs have not been adequately tested in children."