Health & Safety Issues in Orlando | Orlando Legal Examiner

Cancer Check harder to get than Botox

According to a recently published online study by the American Academy of Dermatology, patients that want to see a dermatologist for an evaluation of potential cancer in a mole must wait much longer than it takes to get an appointment to the same dermatologist for a cosmetic Botox injection. Given t

By Ed Normand

/ 29 Aug 2007

Avandia: Increased Risk of Heart Attack

The New England Journal of Medicine published a study that indicated an increased cardiovascular risk associated with Avandia (rosiglitazone), a drug used to treat type 2 diabetes. The study indicated an increase of about 40% in the risk of myocardial infarction among patients receiving Avandia as c

By Michael Damaso

/ 20 Jul 2007

Glaxo Smith Kline Adds Warning to Drug

According to a published report in the Wall St. Journal, Glaxo Smith Kline became the latest drug manufacturer to add a warning label to its ADHD drug, Dexedrine. The new warning label will include a warning about cardiac risks and psychiatric side effects. The new warning was posted on the FDA webs

By The Legal Examiner

/ 22 Aug 2006

Big Defeat for Merck, Maker of Vioxx

A New Orleans jury returned a $50,000,000 award to a 62 year old plaintiff who had taken Vioxx for 31 months. Mr. Barnett had suffered a heart attack four years earlier and stopped taking the drug shortly before Vioxx was pulled from the market. The jury found that Merck failed to adequately warn do

By The Legal Examiner

/ 17 Aug 2006

Jaw Bone Death and Fosamax-an Update

Since the initial news broke about a link between the arthritis drug Fosamax and jaw bone death or osteonecrosis, a panel of medical and pharmacological experts has been convened to study the issue. In most instances, the resulting jaw bone death has occurred after Fosamax patients have had dental s

By The Legal Examiner

/ 16 Aug 2006

Epilepsy Drugs and Birth Defects

A drug touted as an effective treatment of epilepsy has been shown to cause birth defects or fetal death in cases where mothers were taking the drug during pregnancy. The birth defects include malformed hearts and genitals, cleft palate, and artery deformities among children born to women taking Dep

By The Legal Examiner

/ 16 Aug 2006

Medical Malpractice 101

There was an excellent editorial published in the Palm Beach Postyesterday. The editorial sharply criticizes the docility and unwillingness to monitor Florida doctors. The editorial cites Boynton Beach Dr. Mark Schreiber who was cited by state investigators 3 1/2 years ago yet continues to practice

By The Legal Examiner

/ 6 Aug 2006

The 101st Senator

At a recent political fundraiser I heard a congressman refer to the pharmaceutical industry as the “101st Senator” in the United States Senate. He was commenting on the tremendous influence that this industry holds over our elected officials in Washington. The pharma industry throws its influence an

By The Legal Examiner

/ 12 Jun 2006

Fosamax and Jaw Death

There was an interesting article published this morning in the NY Timesregarding osteoporosis drugs and osteonecrosis. According to the article, two groups of people take the osteoporosis drugs which belong to the bisphosphonate family. The first group, those suffering from breast cancer and/or mult

By The Legal Examiner

/ 4 Jun 2006

FDA Urges Stronger Warning for Ketek

Citing a growing number of deaths related to liver failure, the FDA has called for a stronger warning label for the antibiotic drug KetekThe FDA has received reports of 12 cases of acute liver failure, including the four deaths, in patients treated with Ketek, according to a copy of an FDA memo. FDA

By The Legal Examiner

/ 23 May 2006

Fosamax Linked to Serious Injury

While physicians say they’re rare, Fosamax users can be susceptible to “dead jaw” disease or commonly known as jaw rot. Fosamax, an osteoporosis drug belonging to the bisphosphonate family, can lead to “dead jaw” syndrome — a painful condition that causes ulcers, tooth loss and exposed bone. But whi

By The Legal Examiner

/ 22 May 2006

Ketek Facing the Heat

US Senate Finance Committee Chairman Charles Grassley (R-IA) has called on the maker of Ketek, Sanofi-Aventis, to produce its investigator as part of a probe of the company’s handling of the antibiotic. The letter released last night by Mr. Grassley, an Iowa Republican, is the second one he has sent

By The Legal Examiner

/ 18 May 2006