Abilify and TV commercials
 

Hello,

Has anyone else noticed the new Abilify commercials on television every 20 minutes?

I looked up info on the med and see that it was just approved for children with BP I .

Mari


http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/99195.php

http://psychcentral.com/blog/index.p...ch=1&s=abilify

On Friday, the U.S. Department of Justice announced a landmark
over one-half billion dollar settlement with Bristol-Myers Squibb based, in part, on their marketing of Abilify, a fairly commonly prescribed antipsychotic used in the treatment of schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. It was a settlement a long time in coming, announced originally in December 2006.
Not surprisingly, BMS had little to say about the announcement. The original December 2006 announcement gave some idea of what the settlement would entail, at least from a dollar perspective. But the DOJ press release goes into the juicy details that BMS has been mum about.
So this puts a formal end to the investigation, and BMS is merely $515 million poorer. Although I’m not sure I’d use the word “poor” to ever describe a company that brings in nearly $18 billion in 2006 revenues ($1.6 billion in profit), making it the 6th largest pharmaceutical in the world. That means they had to give up a third of their profits for 2006. Luckily they still made a billion for their efforts.
Abilify is recommended by most of our members who take it and have rated it, and appears to be fairly well-tolerated among the antipsychotics. That’s why these allegations are all the more difficult to understand. If Abilify is a good drug for bipolar and schizophrenia, which we believe it is, why the need for all of the off-label sales tactics?
The allegations related to Abilify were:

Quote:

Second, the Government alleged that, from 2002 through the end of 2005, BMS knowingly promoted the sale and use of Abilify, an atypical antipsychotic drug, for pediatric use and to treat dementia-related psychosis, both “off-label” uses.[…] Nonetheless, BMS directed its sales force to call on child psychiatrists and other pediatric specialists, and the sales force then urged physicians and others providers to prescribe Abilify for pediatric patients. BMS also created a specialized long term care sales force that called almost exclusively on nursing homes, where dementia-related psychosis is far more prevalent than schizophrenia or bipolar disorder.

Honestly, I’m not sure how a company of this magnitude could, for 3 years!, think that this kind of behavior was “okay” and not going to come under scrutiny. It is exactly this kind of unfortunate behavior that paints the entire pharmaceutical industry with a singular, often-negative brush.

Will this have a chilling effect on both BMS and the rest of the industry from engaging in these kinds of practices in the future? Gosh, one would hope. Because if a half-billion dollars isn’t going to make a statement, I’m not sure what will.

this sounds
 

very similar to the situation that Pfizer was cited for in promoting
experimental use of Neurontin in massive doses for pain and bipolar in the doctor's offices, rather than running a study.
They paid a fine in excess of $650million, after a whistle blower within the
company revealed this abuse.

The Abilify problem is serious, because the elderly have increased mortality
using this drug and its other atypical cousins.
There is a black box warning from FDA regarding this:
http://www.rxlist.com/cgi/generic/abilify.htm

Because some of the atypical antipsychotics act like antidepressants on the serotonin system, the warnings for children are included in the black box.
Antipsychotics are dangerous in the elderly population. However, they are still used there. ( I used to work at a long term care provider of medications).

What this news item reveals, is the basic abuse the drug industry is engaging in. Using the sales force to promote off label use, or extremely high dosing as in Neurontin, without doing formal safety studies as required by the FDA.
In the case of Neurontin, the sales people were given ACCESS to the patients during their visit to the doctor even...which is just unheard of and a violation of privacy and confidentiality.

The general public is NOT fodder for experiments. Large scale experiments!
If a physician choses to go off label for something, that is his/her responsibility, and the patient can hold them accountable thru the legal system if damage is done. Wholesale experimentation on a grand scale to improve profits is abusive IMO.

I am really scared now, I saw the commercial and it talks about extremely high blood sugar levels causing DEATH or coma! I think I want off this drug, been using it sucessfully for years now but freaking out over the possibility of dying becaue I want to have clear thoughts...I could cry it's so frightening. Should I get off this drug because I am a borderline diabetic? I think so...

I think first off...
 

you could test yourself at home to see if you have elevations.

They may only occur after eating.
You can have a blood test A1c done to show if over time you have poor
glucose control. (this is often better than just one blood fasting glucose test)

Certainly you should discuss this with your doctor.
Zyprexa is the worst offender for blood sugar issues. The newer agents
Abilify and Seroquel, haven't had the time on the market to show this effect
clearly. However, the blood sugar issues do happen.

Sometimes life style can control blood sugar issues. And also it may be dose
dependent, and if you have a genetic history tending toward diabetes.

Most people over 40 have some degree of insulin resistance, and not all of them go on to develop frank Type II diabetes. There are many other factors
that must be present.

You may not have to change. But then unless you watch for it, elevated glucose can sneak up on you.

I am getting an A1c Test done next round of bloodwork because my fasting blood sugar was 100. I am just worried Abilify might be making me become Type II diabetic. It runs in my family and I am turing forty this year. My Mother is having trouble with her blood sugar now that she hit sixty, her fasting blood sugar is 148 and there abouts. Terrible. :(

We just started an exercise program about two months ago and about a week ago we started juicing, like raw fresh juices from an extractor. I have hope I can undo damage begun, but if it's inevitable that it will elevate my levels of glucase I just might need to get off Abilify. I am so scared now. Jack my DH is all upset about it and upset with me for 'not researching the drugs I take better' which I guess is true, but even so, I am still kinda of freaking out about this since seeing the new commercial. :(

There are things you can do...
 

some supplements enhance insulin sensitivity.

r-lipoic acid 100mg/day
Chromium 200mcg/day
Taurine 1 gram a day
Cinnamon extract (but typically 2-6grams a day)

May all help keep sugars down. They have to be used with caution in those
already on some diabetic medication.

Another is an herb, but I have little experience with it.
G.Sylvester

Dear Pam,

Be careful about getting excited about a med that is working for you.
Now I am sorry that I posted this.

I became aware of all these commercials and wondered what was up.
Nothing has changed about the drug itself -- only the company's permission to market it to children.


You can be calm about this:
-you are being careful about what you eat
-you are exercising
-you have plans to get your blood sugar checked.
These are all good things.

Do you have access to a bood sugar monitor at home?

Mari

Oh thank you MrsD, I appreciate the herb/supplement info, I think I might be lucky and be able to avoid this problem and still use Abilify sucessfully for some time. I just don't want to go into Diabetes II because of my desire to be able to have coherent thinking instead of the jumbled mess I existed with for thinking.

Please don't feel that it was you posting this today that set me off Mari, I had seen the commercial twice and was GOING to post something about my fears if this thread hadn't already been posted. So please don't feel bad. I have to admit I overreated a bit because of Jack's fear of losing me to a diabetic coma, but it runs heavily on my mother's side of the family and it scares me, but not due to anything you posted.

This also affects my family in that Jackie was taking abilify for a few years too and I don't think it helped him much. We'd have been better sticking with Risperdal which he took to begin with, I think. It is a criminal thing to use the public as free guinea pigs for their off label prescribing of drugs. :(

here is another example...
 

from our Health News forum today...

Use of CellCept in women off label for lupus and RA---

Birth defects!
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080516/...ing_roche_drug

Dear Pam,

This is going to sound dumb. But listen for a second.

I had an ex-husband and other people close to me suffer from diabetes 1 and 2.

A. So I know that scientists think that Diabetes 2 seems to have a genetic component.

B. And I know that Abilify seems to cause / trigger Diabetes 2 in some folks.

But I don't know if the research know if these two things (A and B) interact.
In other words, I don't know if we have studies that show that Abilify causes more problems in (A) people who seem to have family susceptibility or if it causes the same problems across the board regardless of genetics.

Also, remember that your genes might not have that genetic component (A).

OK.
Not sure if that was helpful or not. I'm just thinking aloud.
I guess my point is that there is much we don't know yet -- we can still hope for the best, esp. since most of us need these meds anyway.

I hope that your blood work comes out clean. :)

Mari

What are other medications for Bipolar 1,or 2. I'm especial interested in bipolar 2 medication. What are some medications that other people have used successfully.

This Abilify doesn't seem to be working for me. The only thing it does is help me to forget what I'm going to say. It makes me feel like I have Altzheimers disease. This is not good. People in town are starting to talk. Not good at all.

I cannot afford this medicine anyway at $400.00 a month. This is not possible for me.

I just called my doctor,and left a message that this Abilify isn't working.

Broke:confused:

abilify didn't work for me and it also made my mouth move involuntarily. I forgot why i stopped geodon. I am on risperdal.

Dear Friend,

You might not have given Abilify enough time to work. Also, the pdoc can increase the dose.
The other thing is that all these meds cause some degree of brain disfunction. It's a matter of choosing how much and what type of disfunction we are willing to put up with. Generally, if the med is helping a great deal in one area, we learn to tolerate some side effects in another area.

But it seems that Abilify is not showing any promise of hope/help for you anyway.

Truthfully, I thought Abilify was a weird choice for you because I had heard that it can cause anxiety. Also, it is an expensive med.
The old meds do not have samples. Drugs without samples are the cheap ones.


Here are some tables listing mood stabilizers.
http://www.psycheducation.org/depres...tabilizers.htm

Here is a list from that page in no particular order.

-lithium (Lithobid, Eskalith)
-valproate (Depakote)
-carbamazepine (Carbatrol, Tegretol)
-olanzapine (Zyprexa)
-lamotrigine (Lamictal
-quetiapine (Seroquel)
-oxcarbazepine (Trileptal)
-risperidone (Risperdal)
-aripiprazole (Abilify)
-ziprasidone (Geodon)


I take Verapamil. The page here talks about that too.

For some of us it is a matter of trial and error to find the right one.
Sometimes it requires patience. Other times, it helps to know soon that a certain drug is not going to work.

Good luck.
I am glad to hear that you have a pdoc you can call now. :)

M.

Thank you Mari
 

I have experienced more anxiety. I didn't want to believe it,but I have. I cannot remember what I want to say. I don't want anymore of it.

If they increase it to 60,that would be $782.40 a month. This is way,way to expensive,and unrealistic of that drug company,and I don't care what kind of Baloney they feed me in justifications. I'm standing up for myself. I'm not paying for their commercials either. I don't know whats going on. I have felt paranoid also. Not good. The price is not fair. Thank you for letting me vent. Brokenfriend

Dear Friend,
Keep venting.
Perhaps the pdoc was trying to help you by giving you samples. Lots of pdocs have samples of Abilify right now.

And most of us need to go through several med "trials" before we find one that works.

I'm glad that you feel that you can speak up for yourself now.
You are going to get better. I really believe that.

Mari

Hi Friend,

I just wanted to chime in and say that 30 is the maximum dose so if you've been on that for a couple of weeks it['s definitely time to try something else. Best wishes to you in your search for relief, I remember how hard it was finding something to work. :)

Once you find what works though you're set. Abilify isn't for everyone and if it's making you more anxious it's time to talk to the Pdoc and see about cross tapering onto something else and OFF abilify. :)

Thank you Mari,and Pamster. I felt better today. I appreciate you all. I wish I could get rid of the anxiety pain in the middle left side of my chest.

I became agitated today,and lost my strength,and crashed on the couch. I'm OK now. I keep getting this physical pain in my chest. Brokenfriend

Definitely sounds like anxiety to me Friend. How long til you go in to see your Pdoc? If it's going to be a week or two you might call in and try to talk with them through the nurses or staff and let him/her know you're having such pains as well as anxiety, maybe they would be able to direct you to something to help, like call in something for the anxiety. I hope you feel better soon Friend. :)

Thank you Pamster. I see a Nurse Practitioner on Thursday. I see my pdoc in two weeks. I called my pdoc,and his secretary didn't call back.

My anxiety just shifted to my head,neck,and breathing. I went to the Sanctuary area on this site,and asked for prayer. BF

if they don't call back keep on calling. I just bought the Psalms and two books with commentary on the Psalms. I am a little scared to read them. I want them to be a comfort and not disturbing. Could you give me a list of those you especially like? My anxiety is beginning to turn to anger. Does that ever happen to you. I LIKE PROZAC. it is cheap too. I forgot what antidepressant you are on.
take care my friend
Bobby

Hi Bobby
 

My anxiety does turn into anger,and rage at times. It's under control. I have taken two pillows,and screamed into them over,and over. I've screamed into the bed. That muffles the scream. I haven't done this often,but I have done it. I use to have a punching canvas bag. That did me good. I think that I need to get another one.

The Psalms are soothing. I know what you mean about getting scared while reading the Bible. That's happened to me many times. It's normal. Reading the Bible means you are drawing close to God,and he's drawing close to you.There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus...

I'll be back with comfort passages. BF

Bobby
 

Here are a couple. Psalm 1:2-3 Psalm 3:3,4,5 Psalm 4:8 Psalm 9:9 Psalm 18:1,2 I'll give you more tomorrow. BF

thank you so much...I haven't felt rage since on the medications but lately i felt irritation towards stupid remarks etc. I think Prozac is letting feelings come in.
Except last night i was talking with a friend who is bipolar and she is worried that i am hypomanic because i laughed she said for half an hour. everything was striking me as funny. After we hung up i got dead serious and scared.
I will try to read the psalms now and the commentary i have with them. Thank you for reassuring me not to be afraid.
Bobby

Bobby
 

Sure. laughter is a wonderful thing. I get like that at times,and it is good for you. I wish that I laughed more often. I heard that at least 3 belly laughs a day where good for you. I have had a screeching haut feeling after I stoped laughing also. I don't know what that is,and I haven't experienced it in a long time. I know exactly what you where talking about.

When people try to diagnose you as something when your not asking can freak you out. Been there,done that. You remember when I told everyone that I was punched in the stomach 2 times in a church for deliverance,and healing. It did not heal,or deliver me. LOL It gave me another insecurity. I was actually beaten up in church by a hard hitting missionary. How many people can say that. Now I feal even more insecure in church. That should not have happened.

I was also told by the church people that I should stop taking my medicine. I did,and got pneumonia,and ended up in the hospital,dehydrated,and everything. I called my dad,and he thought that I had the flew. Someone from another church drove me to the hospital in time. I was there 10 days with IV's in my arm,and dad complained about the bill.

I said those things to say this. People have good intensions,and are sincere,but can be sincerely wrong. Those people where good people,and they made all of these mistakes. Only a doctor can make a diagnosis,and sometimes they are wrong. Doctors have made mistakes with me.

No fun. I become strengthened with thousands of scriptures in the Bible. Let me know when you want some more comfort scriptures. BF:hug::hug::hug:
Love,Love,Love