Chatter Shmatter

Tricks help drug makers sell prescription meds for uses not
Los Angeles Times, CA - Oct 27, 2008
was forced to pay $430 million in civil and criminal fines for marketing the anti-epilepsy drug Neurontin as a drug for psychiatric diseases.

Daily MailAsk the doctor: Stinging hands keep my husband awake
Daily Mail, UK - Oct 27, 2008
He is taking Neurontin, 100mg three times a day, and wears gloves as recommended, but still has no relief. Should he see a specialist?

InjuryBoard.comPfizer Accused Of Manipulating Neurontin Studies
InjuryBoard.com, FL - Oct 9, 2008
Pfizer suppressed medical studies that did not support the drug maker’s campaign to boost sales of it epilepsy drug, Neurontin, according to experts hired
FDA Prescription Drug Safety Reports - Daytona Beach product Justice News Flash
all 2 news articles

Pfizer manipulated Neurontin studies, experts allege in fraud case
Scrip World Pharmaceutical News (subscription), UK - Oct 14, 2008
The case relates to a broad effort by Neurontin users and third-party payers to sue the company for alleged consumer fraud. As a key example, it is alleged

SeniorJournal.comDiabetes drug costs soaring, top $12B last year
The Associated Press - 3 hours ago
The updated guidelines don't include Avandia, which costs about $225 a month. Dr. Susan Spratt, an endocrinologist at Duke University Medical Center,
Diabetes drug costs soaring, top $12B last year guardian.co.uk
More proof needed on costly diabetes drugs-studies Reuters
Cost of Diabetes Care Has Doubled Forbes
all 202 news articles

Do Diabetes Drugs Affect Heart Health?
WebMD - 12 minutes ago
Avandia is one of the newer medications. An earlier study also looked at whether Avandia was riskier than other diabetes drugs. Despite a finding that the

RTT NewsGlaxo Profit Falls on Declining Sales of Avandia Drug (Update1)
Bloomberg - Oct 22, 2008
Glaxo cut jobs as part of a plan to trim 700 million pounds in costs by 2010 after a report linking Avandia to heart attack risks led to a plunge in sales
Avandia Heart Risks Cause Diabetes Associations to Recommend AboutLawsuits.com
GlaxoSmithKline eyes further acquisitions Independent
GSK helped by weak pound as market remains tough Telegraph.co.uk
Reuters - CNNMoney.comall 137 news articles

New Europe, US diabetes guidelines drop Avandia
Reuters - Oct 22, 2008
Sales of Avandia have plummeted in the past year after the drug was linked to risk of heart attack in a pooled analysis of past clinical studies.
Guidelines Drop Rosiglitazone as Recommend Diabetes Agent MedPage Today
Treatment for Type 2 Diabetes Updated U.S. News & World Report
American Diabetes Association, European Association for the Study MarketWatch
International Business Timesall 29 news articles

Teva and Barr Provide Update on Acquisition
WELT ONLINE, Germany - Oct 27, 2008
Neurontin®, Lotrel®, Famvir® and Protonix®, Teva's and Barr's ability to successfully develop and commercialize additional pharmaceutical products,

Novartis Q3 profit seen up 34 pc
Economic Times, India - Oct 14, 2008
Novartis was hit in the third quarter of 2007 by generic competition to products like blood pressure tablet Lotrel and herpes treatment Famvir,

Novartis International AG (SWF:NOVN) Novartis Delivers Sustained
ABN Newswire (press release), Australia - Oct 19, 2008
Cost of Goods Sold improved 1.5 percentage points largely due to a one-time charge of USD 320 million in the 2007 period for a partial impairment of Famvir

Genital Herpes Virus Infects 28% of Women by Age 49 (Update2)
Bloomberg - Oct 2, 2008
Antiviral medicines such as GlaxoSmithKline Plc's Valtrex and Zovirax and Novartis AG's Famvir can shorten and stave off outbreaks. The medicines don't kill

Los Angeles Times

Albany Times UnionViva Viagra? Where’s my sexual dysfunction song?
Albany Times Union, NY - Oct 14, 2008
I looked on the Mayo Clinic website to search “female sexual dysfunction” - I got 2 results. I searched “male sexual dysfunction” on the same site and I got

UK to test drug for low female sex drive
Kentucky.com, KY - Oct 11, 2008
Still others question whether the disorder is a creation of pharmaceutical companies, which stand to make millions on a female counterpart to Viagra.

DODD: Palin arises as icon
New Albany Tribune, IN - Oct 25, 2008
As proof, I offer up the blossoming Viagra industry. Not since the polio vaccine sugar cube have so many voluntarily lined up for a drug.

New gel being tested for postmenopausal women
Newsday, NY - Oct 21, 2008
The treatment, called LibiGel, is one of the first therapies geared to women with low libidos, as opposed to men (think Viagra and Cialis).