Tag: prescription drugs

The ‘Keep Antibiotics Working’ campaign is urging patients not to ask their GP or doctor for antibiotics in a bid to tackle the reported growing resistance to the medicine.

When we have an infection, antibiotic treatments can help to kill the bacteria. However, around 5,000 people reportedly die each year in England because antibiotics don’t work for some infections because they’ve grown a resistance to the medicine.

The campaign was launched by Public Health England in recognition that overuse of antibiotics – and other factors – has helped infections strengthen their resistance to the medicines.
Read More “Calls for people to stop using – or reduce the use of – antibiotics”

Pharmaceuticals have a responsibility to tell doctors and users about any side-effects a drug might have.

But what if the list contains over 20 or 30 potential side-effects?

Even when just taking a paracetamol tablet we may be faced with a long list of potential reactions and potential problems of varying degrees. Are pharmaceutical companies doing this to cover their backs, or are they doing it to confuse the user by downplaying the risks?

Some are suggesting the latter…
Read More “Serious side-effect warnings may be getting diluted on medication labels”

The U.S. has reportedly acknowledged the problem of quadrupling opioid-related deaths, as well as the fact they now account for the majority of fatal overdoses. It’s been declared as a national public health emergency.

Various federal institutions are to be involved in taking measures to combat the problem. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) will require pharmaceutical drug companies that make prescription opioids to “provide more training to prescriber’s”.

As Britain faces its own battles with the overuse of prescription medication – including opioids – will we see similar action here?
Read More “U.S. to take steps to tackle the opioid crisis – will U.K. follow suit on medication problems?”

Plagued by a reported opioid crisis, the U.S. has released national statistics on drug-related deaths, revealing staggering results that reflect the country’s problems.

In the last year alone, the U.S reports a death toll of 64,000 for people who suffered fatal overdoses.

Here in the U.K., the Office for National Statistics puts the figure for deaths involving substance abuse at 952, which is a significant increase from 579 just five years ago. Irrelevant of whether our death-rates are nowhere near as bad as the U.S. or not, the issue is that the U.K. could be headed in a similar direction to the U.S. when it comes to medicinal drug overuse and problems, and this cannot be ignored.
Read More “A reported 22% increase in fatal drug overdoses involving Fentanyl in just one year”

There are plans to reportedly limit the “number and strength” of opioid drugs for first-time users. The decision is based on an attempt to curb a reported “epidemic” where many are thought to be subject to over-prescription of opioids, resulting in reliance and dependency on the powerful drug.

Patients prescribed the drug for the first time are set to only be given a seven-day prescription as part of plans to tackle this growing problem.

Whilst the topic of overusing opioids is hot in America, it’s also being hugely debated here too. In the U.K., we’re also reportedly facing an epidemic of overusing prescription medications.
Read More “Attempts to tackle opioid crisis by limiting prescriptions”

Whilst medication purchased over-the-counter are generally accepted as safe for use, some regulators worldwide are noting that more and more hospital admissions and deaths are being linked to overuse or misuse of over-the-counter drugs.

These drugs are generally seen as safe when used for their intended purpose, but the issue is that they can sometimes “interact negatively” with other drugs, alcohol and any pre-existing conditions the user may have.

It’s also thought that some people are using over-the-counter medications for purposes that they’re not specifically intended for because they can produce some “benefits”. That being said, this can be fraught with dangers.
Read More “Do you know what side effects your over-the-counter medication has?”

We put our lives in the hands of doctors, and we expect to be provided with a health service designed to help and protect us.

As we know, however, this is not always the case.

Sometimes, prescription drugs are required to treat certain ailments, but are usually only recommended if the benefits outweigh the risks. Reportedly, there are alarming concerns surrounding doctors allegedly failing to warn patients about the potential side-effects of prescription drugs they are being given.
Read More “Doctors are reportedly failing to properly inform patients of side effects for prescription drugs”

When we think of drug addiction, most of us think of illegal drugs. However, studies have found that over-prescribing painkillers is starting a potential epidemic of people getting addicted to prescription medications.

Apparently, some manufacturers and marketers may be allegedly going above and beyond to ensure health providers underestimate the strength and prevalence of prescribed drugs. Some suggest that hospitals and pharmacies are prescribing excessively strong doses of addictive medication like opioids, fuelling a public dependency and consequential addiction.
Read More “Over-prescribing medicine may be fuelling drug addiction”

In 1995, U.S. regulators approved a new drug called OxyContin; a highly effective opioid manufactured by Purdue Pharma. The oxycodone hydrochloride controlled-release painkiller was hailed as a wonder drug for many aches and pains, and drug manufactures have made an absolute fortune selling this drug as part of a $400 billion-a-year industry.

However, the manufactures stand accused of serious wrongdoing that helped them cement their success, namely: deceptive advertising; and excessively aggressive marketing.

That’s what the law firms suing these giant drug companies allege is happening.
Read More “The U.S. opioid “crisis” and how it may be coming to the U.K.”

There’s a false perception that drug misuse comes from taking illegal highs. Reportedly, there is also a growing problem with prescription drugs that first swept the U.S., and is now possibly making its way to the U.K.

The extent of the problem is not yet known over here as there doesn’t seem to be enough data. In one example, prescriptions for opiate-based painkiller Tramadol has apparently doubled in the past decade to 24 million prescriptions annually.

So, what are we seeing here? A pandemic of overusing prescription drugs? Growing addictions to prescription drugs? Should we be worried, and what can be done?
Read More “The reported rise in U.K. prescription drugs use”