Reply
Honored Contributor
Posts: 21,733
Registered: ‎03-09-2010

Re: Seeing Medication Ads in a New Light


@Tinkrbl44 wrote:

@Another new name Sue wrote:

I was under the impression that the drugs advertised on TV are newer drugs.  Unless desperate, I would prefer tried and true meds, not newer ones.

 

Those ads go on so long, so you know they are expensive.  And everyone looks so happy and healthy, attractive people.  I find them annoying and mute the TV.


@Another new name Sue 

 

Many of them are recently-approved medications.  

 

I look at it this way ... if something might provide relief or better quality of life, and in clinical trials one person in ten thousand has a severe reaction, I can weigh the odds and do more research.   No one is forcing us to take anything.  

 

IMO the up-side for some patients who have difficulty discussing things with an MD (not everyone is totally forthcoming with their doctors), a problem not previously mentioned might come to light because the patient saw an ad on TV.   As always, discussing these things with the MD brings clarity.

 

TV advertising is VERY expensive, so I assume advertising is a chunk of the budgets.  If they don't advertise on TV ... WHERE should they advertise that reaches the intended group?   No one here has come up with an alternative, unless I missed it.


The intended group should be doctors, not potential customers, @Tinkrbl44 


~Who in the world am I? Ah, that's the great puzzle~ Lewis Carroll, Alice in Wonderland
Respected Contributor
Posts: 4,798
Registered: ‎07-24-2013

Re: Seeing Medication Ads in a New Light

OK this one is nuts. It's a new drug to treat "Tardive Dyskensia"  or "TD" - Ingrezza

 

drugs.com sez cost for Ingrezza oral capsule (40 mg-80 mg) is around $7,362 for a supply of 28 capsules,

 

TD is a serious medication side effect that can cause uncontrollable muscle movements and facial tics and grimaces like tongue thrusting and rapid eye blinks. It can become permanent.

 

How did patients get TD?  Many medications may cause TD, but it's more common with the Atypical Antipsychotics like the ones marketed on TV , mostly to women, usually pushed as anti depressants  as adjunct therapy for antidepressant meds no longer "work" as well as one expected.  and those adjunct ones are BIG $$$$$ because they are not yet off patent.

 

 

Honored Contributor
Posts: 21,733
Registered: ‎03-09-2010

Re: Seeing Medication Ads in a New Light


@CatsyCline wrote:

OK this one is nuts. It's a new drug to treat "Tardive Dyskensia"  or "TD" - Ingrezza

 

drugs.com sez cost for Ingrezza oral capsule (40 mg-80 mg) is around $7,362 for a supply of 28 capsules,

 

TD is a serious medication side effect that can cause uncontrollable muscle movements and facial tics and grimaces like tongue thrusting and rapid eye blinks. It can become permanent.

 

How did patients get TD?  Many medications may cause TD, but it's more common with the Atypical Antipsychotics like the ones marketed on TV , mostly to women, usually pushed as anti depressants  as adjunct therapy for antidepressant meds no longer "work" as well as one expected.  and those adjunct ones are BIG $$$$$ because they are not yet off patent.

 

 


So if I'm reading this correctly, @CatsyCline, this new med (which I have seen advertised) is aimed at the side effects cause by another med. Could this be just the beginning of a chain of meds to counteract the effects of the the med before it?

 

 


~Who in the world am I? Ah, that's the great puzzle~ Lewis Carroll, Alice in Wonderland
Respected Contributor
Posts: 4,798
Registered: ‎07-24-2013

Re: Seeing Medication Ads in a New Light


@suzyQ3 wrote:

@CatsyCline wrote:

OK this one is nuts. It's a new drug to treat "Tardive Dyskensia"  or "TD" - Ingrezza

 

drugs.com sez cost for Ingrezza oral capsule (40 mg-80 mg) is around $7,362 for a supply of 28 capsules,

 

TD is a serious medication side effect that can cause uncontrollable muscle movements and facial tics and grimaces like tongue thrusting and rapid eye blinks. It can become permanent.

 

How did patients get TD?  Many medications may cause TD, but it's more common with the Atypical Antipsychotics like the ones marketed on TV , mostly to women, usually pushed as anti depressants  as adjunct therapy for antidepressant meds no longer "work" as well as one expected.  and those adjunct ones are BIG $$$$$ because they are not yet off patent.

 

 


So if I'm reading this correctly, @CatsyCline, this new med (which I have seen advertised) is aimed at the side effects cause by another med. Could this be just the beginning of a chain of meds to counteract the effects of the the med before it?

 

 


Yes it is an attempt by PHARMA to quell the side effects of an entire class of meds known as ATYPICAl Antipsychotics.

 

When they could not find a market for schizophrenic (1.1% population US) individuals they chased a larger market of depressed and/or bipolar persons ( bi-polar only 2.8% population US) and advertised these drugs on TV. Because they had invested big R&D dollars, they needed ROI.  

 

One in particular is Rexulti, in which TD can quickly develop [manf. own statement] which was pushed as an adjunct therapy for "depression" where a woman walked around holding a smiley face mask because she was still depressed and her anti-depressant meds pooped out. But Rexulti is not an antidepressant, and the ads failed to indicate the actual class of medication - Atypical Antipsychotic.(not just this brand of med - they all left the actual class - Atypicals - to the fine print.)

 

the major fail of a lot of these meds, whether SSRI or other,  is the scientists aren't sure how any of these actually work in the brain. They get around it by saying "It is thought" to work on a specific brain chemistry.

Honored Contributor
Posts: 39,562
Registered: ‎08-23-2010

Re: Seeing Medication Ads in a New Light


@suzyQ3 wrote:

@Tinkrbl44 wrote:

@Another new name Sue wrote:

I was under the impression that the drugs advertised on TV are newer drugs.  Unless desperate, I would prefer tried and true meds, not newer ones.

 

Those ads go on so long, so you know they are expensive.  And everyone looks so happy and healthy, attractive people.  I find them annoying and mute the TV.


@Another new name Sue 

 

Many of them are recently-approved medications.  

 

I look at it this way ... if something might provide relief or better quality of life, and in clinical trials one person in ten thousand has a severe reaction, I can weigh the odds and do more research.   No one is forcing us to take anything.  

 

IMO the up-side for some patients who have difficulty discussing things with an MD (not everyone is totally forthcoming with their doctors), a problem not previously mentioned might come to light because the patient saw an ad on TV.   As always, discussing these things with the MD brings clarity.

 

TV advertising is VERY expensive, so I assume advertising is a chunk of the budgets.  If they don't advertise on TV ... WHERE should they advertise that reaches the intended group?   No one here has come up with an alternative, unless I missed it.


The intended group should be doctors, not potential customers, @Tinkrbl44 


 

 

@suzyQ3 

 

Are you sure you really think that?  

 

When it comes to personal health, consumers should be diligent about medical decisions. That means reviewing information and seeking out more, whenever necessary.  These decisions not only affect our health, but also our quality of life, and perhaps how long we'll live.

 

 If my MD thought a fairly new medicine might work for me with some hypothetical condition and I couldn't find much information, except what the doctor said, I'd be very reluctant to just go along with his/her suggestion. 

 

IMO, Information about medications should NOT be kept from consumers, under any circumstances.  Don't YOU want to know everything you can about something you're taking ...  or are being encouraged to take? 

 

One other thing ... if you came across a TV ad about a condition someone in your family suffers from, wouldn't you think they might want to know about it, to discuss it with their doctor?  What is the harm in encouraging a fact-finding conversation? 

 

Information is power.

 

People have aversions to all sorts of commercials ... pizza, razor blades, deodorants, etc etc.  I know that.  However, if an announcer's comments about a medication are so upsetting, it can be muted, or fast forwarded if the show is recorded.    No harm done.

Honored Contributor
Posts: 33,629
Registered: ‎03-20-2010

Re: Seeing Medication Ads in a New Light

[ Edited ]

The point many of us are making is the decision on medications shouldn't be left to a 2 minute Madison Avenue Ad....The US should follow what the majority of the rest of the world is doing and mot allow Pharmaceutical to advertise on TV. the Drug Representatives have one on one meetings with doctors and medical professionals and give them detailed facts on these drugs. Medical Professionals should be the ones that determine the proper treatment.





Animals are reliable, full of love, true in their affections, grateful. Difficult standards for people to live up to.”
Honored Contributor
Posts: 39,562
Registered: ‎08-23-2010

Re: Seeing Medication Ads in a New Light


@Spurt wrote:

The point many of us are making is the decision on medications shouldn't be left to a 2 minute Madison Avenue ad....the Drug Representatives have one on one meetings with doctors and medical professionals and give them detailed facts on these drugs. Medical Professionals should be the ones that determine the proper treatment for their patient. They know their patients individual medical history. A patient shouldn't use a 2 minute commercial to say that's the drug I want


@Spurt 

 

OF COURSE there will always be patients that will self-diagnose and decide that THAT is the right course of action.  I'm sure doctors by now are very adept at telling patients no, and why it is no for that med.    I seriously doubt this is within the perview of what the FCC considers inappropriate.

 

I also hope no one here assumes that if a person goes to their doctor with information for a new med that they automatically just write a prescription! 

 

No one here thinks that, do they?  So why should information be kept from consumers, as a whole?

 

What I consider the most important part of this is that these kinds of commercials are often a catalyst for the health history and treatment protocols for that particular patient.   Anything that triggers an honest conversation between patient and physician is a very good thing, in my book. 

Honored Contributor
Posts: 33,629
Registered: ‎03-20-2010

Re: Seeing Medication Ads in a New Light

[ Edited ]

Some of us can just agree to disagree on this topic....but an entire global community that doesnt allow it certainly says something....

 

 Dont kid yourself there's patients out there that will INSIST on trying a medication they see advertised, isnt that what the Pharmacuetical Companies want and the whole purpose of spending all that money on these Ads?? There's some doctors that will go ahead and let the patient try the drug and go over the ossible side effects, they'll document it, and the pharmacy will give them the info including side effects info as well...So the doctor and the pharm did a CYA....And if the patient doesnt come back and let the doctor know about ill effects they are experiencing, then the doctor is off the hook--it was the patient that failed to take the proper responsibility..Doctors want to keep their patients--- the affordable care act and these "urgent care" facilities that are springing up all over, (they are on every corner here), has caused many doctor's practices to struggle, or go out of business in our area so some will succomb to patient requests.....

 

 

Animals are reliable, full of love, true in their affections, grateful. Difficult standards for people to live up to.”
Honored Contributor
Posts: 33,629
Registered: ‎03-20-2010

Re: Seeing Medication Ads in a New Light


@suzyQ3 wrote:

@Tinkrbl44 wrote:

@Another new name Sue wrote:

I was under the impression that the drugs advertised on TV are newer drugs.  Unless desperate, I would prefer tried and true meds, not newer ones.

 

Those ads go on so long, so you know they are expensive.  And everyone looks so happy and healthy, attractive people.  I find them annoying and mute the TV.


@Another new name Sue 

 

Many of them are recently-approved medications.  

 

I look at it this way ... if something might provide relief or better quality of life, and in clinical trials one person in ten thousand has a severe reaction, I can weigh the odds and do more research.   No one is forcing us to take anything.  

 

IMO the up-side for some patients who have difficulty discussing things with an MD (not everyone is totally forthcoming with their doctors), a problem not previously mentioned might come to light because the patient saw an ad on TV.   As always, discussing these things with the MD brings clarity.

 

TV advertising is VERY expensive, so I assume advertising is a chunk of the budgets.  If they don't advertise on TV ... WHERE should they advertise that reaches the intended group?   No one here has come up with an alternative, unless I missed it.


The intended group should be doctors, not potential customers, @Tinkrbl44 


@suzyQ3 

 

👏👏👏

Animals are reliable, full of love, true in their affections, grateful. Difficult standards for people to live up to.”
Esteemed Contributor
Posts: 7,170
Registered: ‎03-11-2010

Re: Seeing Medication Ads in a New Light

"Long ago" these ads were banned.  And then slowly the explosion of what we see today. l  am against them.  Commericials of any kind have taken over... longer and  that is why I record most of  my programs.  And I do believe people probably drive their doctors nuts with their own version of what might cure them.  

 

As for me I am very sensitive to most meds and I would never even think of taking something on my own or even approach a doctor with MY suggestion.  I would want him to be first to say something.  My list of reactions are so long that I would not dare try anything or suggest  anything without good information.