Emer Cooke, the CEO of the European Medicines Agency (EMA) is Irish. This is Dublin's famous Halfpenny Bridge which for some reason features in an article outlining the history of the phrase Tail wags Dog which seems appropriate for what followed. I wrote to Emer recently about a bizarre letter I received from Kinapse - A Brush with EMA - who run EMA's medical literature … [Read more...] about How the Safety of Drugs was Destroyed
The Wild Doctor – Le Médecin Sauvage
The French playwright Moliere loved poking fun at pomposity especially when it involved doctors. In Le Bourgeois Gentilhomme, he pokes fun at Monsieur Jourdain, a pompous upstart, who has come into money and is taking on airs and graces. Translating gentilhomme into gentleman misses what the word meant around 1660, which was more like civilized, the manners which … [Read more...] about The Wild Doctor – Le Médecin Sauvage
A Brush with the European Medicines’ Agency
This post should be read in conjunction with Are Journalists the Answer to Clinical Medicines Cause and Effect Problem which is on davidhealy.org, or will be, and last weeks Clinical Details Confuse Expert Doctors along with Royal College of Psychiatrist's Suicide Note. Several months ago, I agreed to review an article by John Read analyzing the hundreds of antidepressant … [Read more...] about A Brush with the European Medicines’ Agency
Clinical Details Confuse Expert Doctors
Following the death of their 16-year-old son Romain, who had been put on paroxetine with Tercian later added, Yoko Motohama and Vincent Schmitt began asking questions of GSK, Sanofi, the French ANSM (Agence nationale de sécurité du medicament), and others. They set up two websites Antidepeffects.wordpress.com and Romainschmitt.wordpress.com. Romain’s case features on … [Read more...] about Clinical Details Confuse Expert Doctors
PPPD – Persistent Postural Perceptual Dizziness
This post is from R, whom I came into contact with at least a decade ago. She had significant SSRI dependence and withdrawal issues. And was very discombobulated by the difficulties she was having. Back in 1997 after a difficult and stressful house move I went to see my Family Doctor because I was getting a lot of headaches and panic attacks in crowded places. She said I was … [Read more...] about PPPD – Persistent Postural Perceptual Dizziness
The Long Awaited PSSD Research Breakthrough?
This image is from an extraordinary blog which tells you how to sex your mouse Breakthrough? Most of the good ideas that RxISK has featured linked to the enduring sexual dysfunctions, whether PSSD, PRSD, PFS and PGAD, and in terms of other problems, have come from readers of these posts. Several readers have stood out in terms of contributions and this post comes from one of … [Read more...] about The Long Awaited PSSD Research Breakthrough?
Could Doctors be Journalists in Disguise
The bravery and dogged persistence of one woman, Rosie Tilli, was in the background to the last RxISK post - Could Journalists be Doctors in Disguise. Her story featured the same day in Antidepressants can Cause Chemical Castration, an article by Maryanne Demasi, a rather exceptional journalist. Lest anyone think there is a cosy club here, Maryanne and I fell out over a … [Read more...] about Could Doctors be Journalists in Disguise
Could Journalists be Doctors in Disguise
I had to give some workshops a few years ago to media students and either while thinking about what to say or in the middle of saying it, or soon after, it hit me that good doctoring has a lot in common with good journalism. Both hinge on getting the story right and key to that is having a real person whom others can contact to check out the story they have been told about … [Read more...] about Could Journalists be Doctors in Disguise
Pyridoxal-5-Phosphate and Akathisia
This post came from a regular contributor to RxISK and DH posts. An earlier comment pointed to something interesting and has developed into this post which should be of interest to anyone who has a withdrawal problem that entails some kind of akathisia. When I came out of a psychiatric hospital in Summer 2019, I had been on zopiclone for a good 6 months. For most of that … [Read more...] about Pyridoxal-5-Phosphate and Akathisia
Withdrawal Mysteries. Jon and Justin’s Journeys
Being Hooked to and having to Withdraw from Antidepressants, especially any that act on the serotonin system, is one of the greatest public health issues of our day. Close to 15 per cent of the population of most Western countries are affected. Peter Groot and colleagues in the Netherlands have done more than anyone to raise the profile of these issues by providing a method … [Read more...] about Withdrawal Mysteries. Jon and Justin’s Journeys