Search results below include Worst Pills, Best Pills Newsletter Articles where your
selected drug is a primary subject of discussion.
September 2023
Patients taking the oral antidepressant drug desipramine (Norpramin) should be aware that it has clinically important interactions with many other prescription medications. Public Citizen’s Health Research Group has designated desipramine, a tricyclic antidepressant, as a Limited Use drug; antidepressants in other drug classes are safer and better tolerated.
May 2023
Patients taking the antifungal drug voriconazole (VFEND), which is marketed in both oral and injectable forms, should be aware that it has clinically important interactions with many other prescription medications.
March 2023
Learn about the numerous prescription and over-the-counter medications that can cause or exacerbate insomnia.
March 2023
Patients taking the widely prescribed hypothyroidism drug levothyroxine should be aware that it has clinically important interactions with many other prescription and over-the-counter medications, dietary supplements and even certain foods.
February 2023
Patients taking the frequently prescribed antidepressant nortriptyline (PAMELOR) should be aware that it has clinically important and potentially dangerous interactions with many other prescription and over-the-counter medications.
August 2022
A recent clinical trial indicates that many persons with obsessive-compulsive disorder who respond favorably to joint behavioral and drug treatment may then safely taper their medication use very slowly to elimination, though careful follow-up clinical monitoring is still essential.
July 2022
Medications are a leading cause of sexual dysfunction in women. Knowing which drugs prescribed or recommended by your doctor can cause sexual dysfunction will allow you to take steps to prevent or minimize this common, often troubling adverse drug effect.
May 2022
Patients taking any of the widely used nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) should be aware that they all have clinically important interactions with many other medications.
April 2022
Medications are a leading cause of sexual dysfunction in men. Knowing which drugs prescribed or recommended by your doctor can cause sexual dysfunction will allow you to take steps to prevent or minimize this common, often troubling adverse drug effect.
December 2021
Learn why we have designated St. John’s wort, an herbal dietary supplement that is commonly available in capsules, tablets or teas, as Do Not Use.
September 2021
Gastrointestinal bleeding is a common cause of hospitalization and in severe cases can result in death. Find out which commonly used medications can cause gastrointestinal bleeding.
July 2021
Patients taking the commonly prescribed abnormal heart rhythm drug amiodarone should be aware that it has clinically important interactions with many other prescription medications.
June 2021
Patients taking the commonly prescribed antibiotic erythromycin should be aware that it has clinically important interactions with many other prescription medications.
January 2021
In this article, we review results of a new study that sheds further light on the association between the use of specific antidepressants during early pregnancy and the small risk of birth defects.
September 2020
Although impaired driving usu¬ally is caused by alcohol or marijuana, many commonly used prescription and over-the-counter medications also can impair one’s ability to drive safely. Learn about several classes of medications that can cause this serious problem to protect yourself, your passengers and others who share the road with you.
August 2020
Patients taking the commonly used blood thinner warfarin (COUMADIN, JANTOVEN) should be aware that it has clinically important interactions with numerous other prescription and over-the-counter medications, as well as some dietary supplements.
October 2019
Next to Parkinson’s disease, drug-induced parkinsonism is the second most common cause of parkinsonism, accounting for about 8-12% of all parkinsonism cases. Find out which commonly used drugs can cause this condition.
September 2019
Patients taking the commonly prescribed epilepsy drug phenytoin (DILANTIN, PHENYTEK), one of the oldest epilepsy drugs, should be aware that it has clinically impor¬tant interactions with many other prescription and over-the-counter medications. Some of these interactions can lead to phenytoin toxicity, and others can lead to ineffective seizure control.
June 2019
Read about the many prescription drugs that can interact in dangerous ways with grapefruit or grapefruit products.
April 2019
Drugs are the most frequent cause of taste disturbances. In this article, we identify more than 60 commonly used prescription medications that have been linked to problems with taste.
March 2019
Restless legs syndrome is a common neurological movement and sensory disorder that affects 5 to 10 percent of the population. In this article, we identify some of the many drugs that can cause or worsen this disorder.
March 2019
Read about the many prescription medications that can interact in dangerous ways with lithium, the drug of choice for treating bipolar disorder, also known as manic depression.
January 2019
Read about the many prescription and over-the-counter medications that can interact in dangerous ways with clopidogrel, a widely used anti-platelet drug.
October 2018
In this article, we summarize the results of a recent research study showing that use of medications that have depression as a potential adverse effect is very common. We also identify some of the many prescription medications that can cause depression symptoms, including suicidal thoughts or behavior.
March 2018
In his editor’s column, Dr. Michael Carome highlights the most recent wave of price hikes by major pharmaceutical companies at the start of 2018.
February 2018
Abnormal involuntary movements (movement disorders) occur as adverse events associated with many widely used medications and can cause substantial hardship for affected individuals. Find out which drugs are associated with these adverse effects.
February 2014
Some degrees of depression are less likely to respond to treatment with an antidepressant. This article reviews the evidence and evaluates 27 different antidepressants, labeling many as Do Not Use or Limited Use.
August 2012
We review a recent study concerning the lack of evidence that antidepressants are effective in elderly, demented people. Find out the risks involved with antidepressant use in this population and learn about the safer, more effective nondrug approaches to treating depression in elderly adults.
July 2012
This article updates and expands our earlier list of drugs that can have harmful interactions with grapefruit juice. The list now includes 82 different drugs.
March 2012
The article discusses why taking certain antidepressants after a heart attack may increase the risk of bleeding. Find out which ones are the culprits.
April 2011
The article lists 27 drugs that can cause akathisia, a condition characterized by muscular quivering and the inability to sit still. Other signs of the condition include fidgety movements, leg swinging while sitting, rocking from foot to foot or pacing and motor restlessness.
December 2010
The article describes the symptoms of the life-threatening neurological disorder neuroleptic malignant syndrome (NMS) and lists 40 different prescription drugs that have been found to cause it.
October 2010
A study discovered that more than 1 out of every 10 people who went to a Parkinson’s disease center was found to have drug-induced Parkinsonism. These people were misdiagnosed as having the more common illness, Parkinson’s disease, which is irreversible and has unknown causes.
June 2010
Find out why you should not use cough products such as ROBITUSSIN DM that contain dextromethorphan. Also view a list of 22 other drugs that can have harmful interactions with dextromethorphan.
April 2010
This article discusses the greatly increased risk of bleeding with some widely-used antidepressant drugs and provides information that the FDA has not yet required be included in the patient Medication Guides for these drugs.
July 2008
A recent study has found large numbers of reports of psychiatric adverse effects with varenicline (CHANTIX) including hundres of reports of suicidal acts, thoughts or behaviors; possible psychosis; and hostility or aggression.
April 2008
The article lists more than 30 prescription drugs that can cause the serotonin syndrome.
January 2008
More than 70 million prescriptions a year are filled for these popular antidepressants, including Prozac, Paxil, Zoloft, Luvox, Celexa and Lexapro. This article gives details about more than 60 other widely prescribed prescription drugs that can have harmful interactions if used with these antidepressants. The two different kinds of interactions are also discussed.
October 2007
Because of evidence from a number of studies, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently required a “black box” label for all SSRI (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor) antidepressants indicating that use in children could lead to an increased risk of suicidal behavior. Now comes a study published in the prestigious American Journal of Psychiatry (Volume 164, pp. 1356-1363) purporting to show, in effect, the opposite: the FDA warnings had caused the rate of pediatric SSRI prescriptions to plummet and as a result young people are killing themselves due to lack of treatment. If this were true, it would be a clear example of the unintended consequences of regulation.
The paper and its subsequent publicity appear to be little more than a public relations ploy. The editors of the AJP should not have allowed such gross misrepresentations to pass into print unscathed, and journalists who cited this study as if it deserved equal credence to the RCTs are just as guilty.
July 2007
Because of new information about increased risks of suicidal thoughts associated with the use of a variety of antidepressants, people of all ages should be monitored closely with all antidepressants after the drugs are first prescribed, switched or when the dosage is changed.
Do not stop using any antidepressants without first consulting the prescriber.
October 2006
Women who are pregnant and taking certain antidepressants take note: a recent study finds that you are more likely to have a recurrence of depression if you stop treatment during pregnancy, but another recent study suggests that taking certain antidepressants may harm your baby. Find out about this dilemma.
October 2006
If you are taking triptans, SSRIs or SNRIs and experience the symptoms of serotonin syndrome listed in this article, you should seek medical attention immediately. This is because of the possibility of life-threatening reactions such as nausea, changes in blood pressure or hallucinations that may be caused by the interaction of migraine headache drugs, called triptans, and certain antidepressants.
July 2006
The article discusses numerous recent examples of the harm that has been caused by off-label prescribing, including the heart drugs amiodarone (Cordarone), many antipsychotic drugs, topiramate (Topamax)and several antidepressants.
December 2004
Belatedly, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced on October 15, 2004 that it is taking steps to inform parents and physicians about the risks of antidepressants when these drugs are used to treat major depressive disorder in children and adolescents.
October 2004
The Canadian equivalent of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Health Canada, issued a public advisory on August 9, 2004 warning that newborns may be adversely affected when their mothers take one of the family of antidepressants known as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) and other newer anti-depressants during the third trimester of pregnancy.
August 2004
At the request of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), eight out of ten manufacturers of newer antidepressants have agreed to add a warning about the possibility of an increased risk of suicide associated with the use of these drugs. The warning will appear in the professional product labeling, or package insert, for these drugs.(listed in the article)
May 2004
Fourteen years ago, in May 1991, the Health Research Group petitioned the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to require a warning in the professional product labeling, or package insert, of fluoxetine (PROZAC) concerning the risk of suicidal impulses in patients using the drug. Fluoxetine belongs to the family of antidepressants known as selective serotonin re-uptake inhibitors, or SSRIs. Read the warning we asked for back then.
February 2004
The January 5th issue of the Medical Letter, a widely respected source of independent information about pharmaceuticals and dietary supplements, has a review of the increasingly researched problem of the interaction between grapefruit juice and many prescription and over-the-counter drugs. Like most interactions between chemicals in the body, this one involves the impairment, by grapefruit juice, of the body’s ability to metabolize many drugs, leading to higher than expected — and sometimes dangerous — levels of these drugs.This article lists the drugs.
December 2003
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a Public Health Advisory on October 27, 2003 about reports of suicidal thinking and suicide attempts in clinical trials of eight drugs in pediatric patients with major depressive disorder (MDD).
October 2002
This is the first of a two part series on drug induced psychiatric symptoms that is based on the July 8, 2002 issue of The Medical Letter on Drugs and Therapeutics. Regular readers of Worst Pills, Best Pills News will recognize The Medical Letter as a reference source written for physicians and pharmacists that we often use because of its reputation as an objective and independent source of drug information. The article lists the drugs and their psychiatric adverse effects.
June 2002
Grapefruit juice can interact with a number of therapeutically important drugs that could lead to the possibility of toxicity. These drugs are listed in the article.
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