The Mental Health "Stigma"

Two news items of interest were sent to me over the past few days, both, it would seem, are aligned with one another.

First off, let's take a look out the worn out phrase that lots of mental health specialists and even celebrities seem to trawl out every 5 minutes or so.

The mental health stigma

This from the Mental Health Commission in Australia, I plucked the first one that appeared in a Google search, all mental health foundations say pretty much the same.

Three out of four people with a mental illness report that they have experienced stigma. Stigma is a mark of disgrace that sets a person apart. When a person is labelled by their illness they are seen as part of a stereotyped group. Negative attitudes create prejudice which leads to negative actions and discrimination.

There's not a day goes by when we hear the calls of organizations or celebrities calling for an end to mental health stigma. Canadian writer and actress, Mary Walsh, is one such celebrity.

Walsh is a spokesperson for Bell Let's Talk, an organization that has, according to their website, "Committed over $100 million to support a wide range of mental health organizations, large and small, from coast to coast to coast."

Bell Media is Canada’s premier multimedia company with leading assets in television, radio, out-of-home advertising, and digital media. Bell Media owns 30 local television stations led by CTV, Canada’s number 1 television network.

Today, Today, Bell will donate 5¢ more to mental health initiatives for every:

• Text message sent
• Mobile & long distance call made
• Tweet using #BellLetsTalk
• Share of the Facebook image

That's a very generous offer given that the figure could run into the millions of dollars.

I'm in agreement with them to a certain extent. Yes, we should talk about mental health but the subject matter shouldn't be what more can they do to help depressed people, it should be what harm are they doing to depressed people.

BellLetsTalk, however, seem to back up their stigma claims with some "facts", of which there are many. Here's a few...

In Canada, only 1 out of 5 children who need mental health services receives them. - CMHA

Mood and anxiety disorders impact an estimated 22% of the Canadian population. - CMHA

Suicide accounts for 24% of all deaths among 15-24 year-olds and 16% among 25-44 year-olds. - CMHA

CMHA stands for the Canadian Mental Health Association, their homepage shows one of their principle sponsors to be Lundbeck, manufacturers and marketers of such drugs as Celexa (citalopram) and Lexapro (escitalopram) - which leads me nicely to the second news item that was sent to me this week.

Yesterday the New York Times (NYT) ran a feature regarding an apparent influential government-appointed health panel who have called for women be screened for depression during pregnancy and after giving birth.

Their claims, according to the NYT, "comes in the wake of new evidence that maternal mental illness is more common than previously thought; that many cases of what has been called postpartum depression actually start during pregnancy; and that left untreated, these mood disorders can be detrimental to the well-being of children."

The panel gave its recommendation, which was published in the journal JAMA, a “B” rating, which means depression screening must be covered under the Affordable Care Act.

In the NYT feature a woman/mother is quoted, seemingly to support the call for "maternal mental illness."

Melissa Mead, 30, of The Dalles, Ore, tells the NYT that shortly after her son Brady’s birth, she experienced postpartum depression, anxiety and O.C.D. In her own words she "cried continually, barely slept, rarely left home and was scared to death that my baby was going to suffocate."

Hello!

Isn't this a normal response to giving birth, isn't this just a motherly instinct?

The NYT goes on to say that...

After a year, she saw a psychiatrist for talk therapy. When her second son, Emmett, was born, and she had more symptoms, including fearing that she would stab herself with a kitchen knife, Ms. Mead tried several medications until one worked. She now volunteers for Postpartum Support International.

Several medications until one worked? Are we led to believe that some of them didn't work? Shock, horror, you mean some antidepressants don't work?

Mead is now a volunteer for Postpartum Support International (PSI), an organization whose purpose it is to increase awareness among public and professional communities about the emotional changes that women experience during pregnancy and postpartum.

In 2015 the PSI and Tree of Hope Foundation held their Annual Conference. The conference theme was "Planting seeds of hope: overcoming stigma, increasing options and embracing innovative treatments."

Ah, there's that word - "treatments."

Because the NYT featured a woman's story to support the calls for more screening for women with "maternal mental illness", I thought I'd throw in a story about the kind of treatments used to treat mothers during pregnancy.

Lundbeck's Celexa (citalopram) is one such treatment.

Back in 2013 Scottish mom, Cheryl Buchanan, wrote a guest post for this blog. It was with regard to the birth defects caused to her unborn child. Cheryl aborted her child at 23 weeks after being told that the fetus had severe abnormalities which meant she was incompatible with life.

Cheryl has been at loggerheads with Lundbeck regarding the death of her baby girl.

Scans had detected a series of anomalies in her unborn child, namely...

• Diaphragmatic hernia or eventration
• Long bone immobility
• Cystic hygroma 
• Unilateral cleft hand
• Microgynathia

Cheryl had been taking Lundbeck's citalopram prior and during her pregnancy.

Lundbeck carried out an assessment of Cheryl's claims and forwarded their findings to the MHRA.

Lundbeck, as far as I am aware, also use the World Health Organisation "causality categories".

Here's what they found.

• (Foetal death in utero) - drug related - possible
• (Pulmonary hypoplasia) - drug related - possible
• (Diaphragmatic hernia) - drug related - possible
• (Hand deformity) - drug related - possible
• (Skin laxity) - drug related - possible
• (Skin swelling) - drug related - possible
• (Drug exposure in utero) - drug related - possible

The actual documents can be viewed here.

Now, I'm sure many people get the cold shoulder treatment when diagnosed (labelled) with a mental illness - but is there really a stigma attached to it?

I'll go out on a limb here and suggest that there is more of a stigma attached to people like Cheryl Buchanan speaking out against the use of antidepressants during pregnancy - people like Cheryl are deemed irresponsible for taking the stance that she has - normally by healthcare professionals and those who wish to believe that antidepressants are safe during pregnancy.

You want facts?

During the citalopram animal reproduction studies it was shown that citalopram has been shown to have adverse effects on embryo/fetal and postnatal development, including teratogenic effects resulting in in decreased embryo/fetal growth and survival and an increased incidence of fetal abnormalities (including cardiovascular and skeletal defects) (Source FDA)

Meantime, more calls for screening women for mental health illnesses is being touted in the widely read New York Times. If you think the pharmaceutical companies, including Lundbeck, aren't behind this latest push then think again.

Both stories call for more help with the stigma associated with mental illness, of course they do - Big Pharma have something to sell and they want you in their corner helping them push their drugs on unsuspecting mothers.

Bob Fiddaman

Two Former Glaxo Scientists Charged With Trying to Steal Data

It never rains but it pours for poor old Andrew Witty. Last week it was learned that he had been implicated for ignoring the claims of an employee that dishonest study data was used to promote the effectiveness of a smoking-cessation product, NiQuitin. And now the company that he is CEO of are (yet again) in the news.

It appears that the dust hasn't yet settled in China and two former scientists at a GlaxoSmithKline research facility in Pennsylvania have been indicted for allegedly scheming to steal data on an in-development cancer drug from the research facility and sell them in China.

Yu Xue and Lucy Xi were scientists working at GSK's research facility in Upper Merion, Pennsylvania and had allegedly engaged in a scheme to steal GSK research data, procedures and manufacturing processes for biopharmaceutical products.

Xue, it is alleged, emailed confidential information from her GSK email account to her personal email account so she could then forward it to Li and Mei, two of three others named in the complaint, with whom she, in 2012, founded Chinese companies Renopharma Inc., Nanjing Renopharma Ltd. and Shainghai Renopharma Ltd.

Although this doesn't show GSK in a bad light it does beg the question about the security at GSK.

The indictment charges all five people with conspiring to fraudulently obtain property from GlaxoSmithKline, theft and wire fraud, according to Business Insider.

It's a pity we don't get Glaxo employees trying to steal GSK's procedures for researching, developing and manufacturing other products, Paxil and Wellbutrin for example. Or maybe more of their reps coming forward and blowing the whistle on the illegal promotion of these two particular antidepressants.

So, already in 2016 we have two news stories featuring British pharmaceutical giant, Glaxo. One showing that dishonest study data was used to promote the effectiveness of NiQuitin, the other for showing how two of their own employees breached security and tried to pass off trade secrets.

Ah well, they're getting better - at least no kids have died as a result of their latest shenanigans.

Bob Fiddaman.

Goldilocks, the Untold Paxil Story

I wrote this back in 2011 and think it's worthy of a re-post.

It's a modern day version of a tale we are all familiar with - it's also something we should all pay heed to - when reading you can substitute 'Paxil' for any other antidepressant currently on the market.

**WARNING** Contains profanity.


Goldilocks and the Three Bears...A 21st Century Perspective


Once upon a time there was a little girl called Goldilocks.

Goldilocks was 10 years old and had been diagnosed with a mental disorder, her inability to stay awake in the classroom and consequent poor marks meant she had been deemed as having GAD, Generalized Anxiety Disorder. The school psychiatrist said that Goldilocks was "stressing" about things at night and not getting enough sleep, this would often result in her falling asleep during school lessons. He prescribed her Paxil, a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor [SSRi] but it didn't agree with her, in fact she became suicidal whilst on it. Later, her psychiatrist switched medications, opting instead for Cymbalta. She was to take her dose just before she went to bed at night.

On the morning of May 20, 2011, Goldilocks had decided to "bunk off" school. Her morning had started badly, her parents had been arguing again about money, her father was pissed off at her mother because there was no food in the cupboards, this meant Goldilocks had to go without breakfast. She left her parents house hungry and sought solace in the forest adjacent to the family home.

It was around about midday that Goldilocks felt severe hunger pangs, these were increased by a sweet smell in the distance, she knew immediately that the aroma drifting through the forest was that of Porridge and she was certain she caught a whiff of maple syrup too. "Yummy", she thought as her little legs carried her toward the sugary delight.


The Bear family were rushing around that morning. Mummy Bear was panic-stricken as she had run out of her medication, ironically that medication was Paxil. Baby Bear looked on in horror as he saw his mummy anxious, agitated, shaking violently and yelling at the top of her voice, "WHERE'S MY PAXIL?"

**Actual document from SmithKline Beecham**

Daddy Bear was busying himself making Porridge. Baby Bear liked it when daddy made the Porridge as he always added maple syrup.

"Have you taken your Ritalin Baby Bear?" Daddy Bear asked.

"Yes daddy, with my milk as I always do each morning", replied the 9 year old Baby Bear.

"OH, IT'S ALRIGHT FOR YOU ISN'T IT. AS LONG AS YOU'VE TAKEN YOUR MEDS THEN EVERYTHING IS OKAY. WHAT ABOUT ME...WHERE'S MY PAXIL?", Mummy Bear howled.

"Calm down dear," Daddy Bear interjected.

"CALM DOWN...CALM FUCKING DOWN? DO YOU KNOW WHAT IT'S LIKE WHEN I MISS MY DOSE OF PAXIL? HAVE YOU EVER FUCKING EXPERIENCED THE BRAIN ZAPS AND NAUSEA, YOU INCONSIDERATE PRICK"

Mummy Bear was having one of those bad days thought Baby Bear.

"Okay, let's head on down to the pharmacy, the Porridge can wait, it's too hot to eat at the moment anyhow. We can take a drive down to the village and let it cool down, it will be just perfect by the time we get back", announced Daddy Bear.

Daddy Bear wasn't looking forward to driving the car, he had a fear of driving, a deep rooted problem from his childhood, his psychiatrist had told him. Daddy Bear had been prescribed Xanax, a benzodiazepine.


Goldilocks had saw the Bear family climb into the family saloon, the mother seemed like a right bitch, swearing and shouting at her husband and child.

Once the saloon had turned the corner, Goldilocks made her way toward an open window she had spied upon her approach. The sweet smell of maple syrup was overpowering. She climbed through the aperture and made her way to the kitchen where she saw three bowls of Porridge on the table.

She tested each bowl before gulping down the contents of the small child bowl, the others were just too hot.

Goldilocks was feeling comfortable in her surroundings and she lost all sense of time and fear. She sat on a chair in the lounge and flicked on the radio that was close by.

"...and we are going over to to our reporter on the scene right now. Ed, what can you tell us about the shooting?"

"Well, it appears that a woman walked into the Mahoney Drug Store about 15 minutes ago and calmly walked up to a shop assistant and shot her in the head. I've been privy to see the CCTV footage and it appears the woman had been somewhat agitated upon entering the store. It also appears that she was refused medication by one of the staff members, the video shows her trashing the store before leaving through the door. 5 minutes later she returned, walked calmly up to the shop assistant and pulled out a firearm and shot the assistant in the head. Police have secured the area and it seems another two people have been found shot in a family saloon, early indications report that it is a man and small child but we cannot confirm that just yet..."

Goldilocks knew Mahoney's Drug Store, it was just a five minute journey from her school. Oh well, she thought, probably someone with mental health problems.

She turned off the radio and headed up the stairs where she found a bed, the overpowering urge to sleep had come on like a speeding train. She lay on the bed and reached for the half empty glass of milk on the bedside cabinet, next to the glass was a box of Ritalin, she had heard of this drug before, sixteen of her classmates were taking it. She carefully opened the blister pack and, one by one, swallowed the 14 tablets.

It was to be the final sleep she would ever have.


Bob Fiddaman

Is Contraceptive Pill, Rigevidon, Safe?

Is the contraceptive pill, Rigevidon, safe? Well, the MHRA seem to think so, unless, of course, they have been misquoted by the press.

I don't normally write about drugs outside of the psychiatric medication circle but this one grabbed my attention as it's from Birmingham and we can see clearly how the MHRA operate. To be honest, I'm flabbergasted at their shrug of the shoulders. I'll explain why later. First, here's the story...

Teaching assistant Fallan Kurek, 21, Tamworth, died after taking the contraceptive pill, Rigevidon and an inquest into her death has opened this morning.

According to the Birmingham Mail, "A scan revealed that Fallan had a large clot on her lung, causing the right side of her heart to become inflamed." Furthermore, her parents claim that doctors told them that she may have died as a result of taking the contraceptive pill, Rigevidon.

The shoulder shruggers, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), were contacted by the Birmingham Mail and  "insists the pill is safe and that women should continue to take it."

Wait a minute here...

Here we have parents of a dead girl who claim that doctors told them that their daughter may have died as a result of taking a drug - and the MHRA are disputing this because they claim the pill is safe?

So, let's just get this straight.

If a doctor, or doctors, file an adverse reaction report to the MHRA implicating a drug in the death of someone then the MHRA (because they are already convinced of a drug's safety) dismiss the adverse reaction? Furthermore, they go public with their opinion?

I'm somewhat baffled. Isn't the premise of the regulator to investigate adverse reaction reports impartially?

How are they being impartial in this instance with such a broad statement?

Let's take a look at the patient information leaflet (PIL) for Rigevidon, ironically hosted on the MHRA website.


The pill and thrombosis

Your chances of having a blood clot are only increased slightly by taking the Pill.

• Of 100,000 women who are not on the Pill and not pregnant, about 5 will have a blood clot in a year.
• Of 100,000 women taking a Pill such as Rigevidon, about 15 will have a blood clot in a year

So, 10 more women are more likely to develop a blood clot when taking Rigevidon, yet the MHRA claim it's "safe and that women should continue to take it."

The leaflet goes on to tell us...

Venous thrombosis

The use of any combined pill, including Rigevidon, increases a woman’s risk of developing a venous thrombosis (formation of a blood clot in vessels) compared with a woman who does not take any contraceptive pill.

Yet the MHRA claim it's "safe and that women should continue to take it."

The leaflet goes on to tell us possible side effects...

Like all medicines, Rigevidon can cause side effects, although not everybody gets them.

These side effects have been reported in women using the pill, which can occur in the first few months after starting Rigevidon, but they usually stop once your body has adjusted to the pill.

The following serious adverse events have been reported in women using combined oral contraceptives...

• Venous thromboembolism (a blood clot in vessels)
• Arterial thromboembolic disorders (the blocking of an artery)

Yet the MHRA claim it's "safe and that women should continue to take it."

Maybe the Birmingham Mail misquoted the MHRA or maybe the MHRA have now decided to ignore warnings on patient information leaflets?

I'm perplexed as to why the MHRA can claim a drug is safe and that women should continue taking it when the patient information leaflet suggests otherwise.

Rigevidon is marketed and manufactured by Hungarian pharmaceutical company, Gedeon Richter.


Bob Fiddaman.


**UPDATE**

Coroner returns narrative verdict.

http://www.birminghammail.co.uk/news/midlands-news/fallan-kurek-inquest-contraceptive-pill-10755513

Paxil Suicide Case Set For Trial

For those who have been following this particular case you'll know some of the methods GlaxoSmithKline's lawyers, King & Spalding, have been using to try and get the case dismissed before it goes to trial.


Background

In June 2010 Stewart Dolin visited his family doctor who wrote him a prescription for Paxil for "work-related anxiety and depression".

Dolin's prescription was dispensed but he received the generic form, manufactured by Mylan.

Six days after beginning his course of the generic Paxil, Dolin left his office shortly after having returned from lunch with a business associate. He walked to a nearby Chicago Transit Authority Blue Line station at Washington and Dearborn in downtown Chicago. As a northbound train approached the station, Mr. Dolin leaped in front of it to his death. Blood tests taken with Mr. Dolin’s autopsy were positive for paroxetine (Paxil)

Stewart's wife, Wendy Dolin, filed suit against GSK claiming Paxil had induced the suicide of her husband. ((Dolin v. SmithKline Beecham Corp. et al., case number 1:12-cv-06403)


Legal Background

First off, GSK argued that Dolin was taking the generic version of Paxil marketed and manufactured by Mylan, ergo they were not responsible for the drug inducing suicide. However, a  U.S. District Judge told Mylan that they would not have to face any trial but said Glaxo was responsible for the generic drug’s design and warning label and would have to face negligence claims.

Since filing, Dolin has been sent more than 30 subpoenas from GSK, they have also made over 70 record requests and have shown the Dolin children their father’s private medical notes. To top it all, GSK’s lawyers have been asking (goading) Wendy about her love life since her husband killed himself.

GSK then turned their attention to four expert witnesses. One of those witnesses, Dr. David Healy, came under heavy fire from Glaxo’s gunslingers, King & Spalding. They had accused Healy of being a radical activist who held an extreme bias against GSK. Furthermore, GSK had probed into Healy’s private life and had, during a 10 hour deposition, talked more about his finances than the actual science behind Paxil and induced suicide.

GSK filed motions to exclude all four expert testimonies from the trial, they were denied these motions by Judge James B. Zagel who, in summary, said...

“I am denying all four of GSK’s motions to exclude. The Daubert criteria are satisfied when a well-credentialed expert provides well-supported opinions that are relevant and reliable.”

Moving Forward

Yesterday (Tuesday Jan 12) Judge James B. Zagel ruled that the suit filed by Dolin should now move straight to trial. Glaxo, via their attorneys, weren't happy and, according to Law360, spent nearly an hour arguing that David Healy, an expert for Dolin, should reveal documents tied to a patient of his who committed suicide. However, privacy laws suggest that Healy could be fired if he were to reveal patient information. One would have thought that Glaxo know all about privacy laws, it was they who told Healy that he could not reveal any information he gleaned by looking at GSK's own internal documents in a previous case against them, a case incidentally that implicated Paxil and suicide. GSK lost that case - Judgement below.

Dolin is represented by Michael L. Baum, Bijan Esfandiari, Frances M. Phares and R. Brent Wisner of Baum Hedlund Aristei & Goldman PC and David Rapoport, Joshua Weisberg and Lindsey Epstein of Rapoport Law Offices PC.

GlaxoSmithKline is represented by Alan S. Gilbert of Dentons, Andrew T. Bayman, Todd P. Davis and Heather M. Howard of King & Spalding LLP and Robert E. Glanville, Tamar P. Halpern and Eva Canaan of Phillips Lytle LLP.




Here's Wendy speaking openly about her husband's induced suicide. She speaks with grace, courage and dignity, quite the opposite to how GlaxoSmithKline and their highly paid attorneys have treated her.

Bob Fiddaman.

GlaxoSmithKline: No Smoke Without Fire - Witty Implicated

I love stumbling on court documents, especially when those documents are complaints against British pharmaceutical giant, GlaxoSmithKline.

GlaxoSmithKline made claims that they were going to be more transparent after the Department of Justice handed down a record breaking $3 billion fine to them back in 2012.

Cynics, such as me, didn't believe them. Looks like this old cynic has been proven right.

Former GlaxoSmithKline biostatistics manager, Alexandre Selmani, has filed a whistleblower lawsuit in a New Jersey state court. The complaint alleges that GSK fired Selmani for alleging dishonest study data was used to promote the effectiveness of a smoking-cessation product, NiQuitin.

The complaint alleges that GSK engaged in an “illegal, deceptive marketing program” to promote the product “without justification” as a “significant advance” in nicotine treatment.

More importantly, than previous whistleblower lawsuits, this complaint implicates Glaxo's CEO, Andrew Witty.

This, from the complaint, verbatim.

In 2012, Seimani discovered that there were numerous mistakes made in the "Smokers Health Project" being conducted by Defendant Kotler, Selmani's direct supervisor and a Director of Biostatistics, at Defendant GSK , specifically the mistakes involved with the Phantom Patch study 53820642 and the Nicotine Film study RH01589, which affected the projects quality. 

As early as the spring of 2012 Selmani brought the mistakes to the attention of Defendant Kotler and demonstrated to Defendant Kotler that his mistakes rendered the results of the project to be unreliable.

In mid-December of 2012, having had no success with Defendant Kotler, Selmani advised the company's then vice president Howard Marsh (hereinafter "Marsh',) via e-mail, that mistakes were being made in the "Smokers Health Project", specifically Selmani showed Marsh that the study on the Phantom Patch 53820642 had numerous mistakes in the statistical methodology which affected the quality of the results. These studies had been conducted by Defendant Kotler.

Within fifteen minutes of Selmani sending the e-mail to Marsh, Marsh responded to Selmani via e-mail which stated: "Whilst it is important to create a culture of technical debate and challenge, it is vital that we do this in a professional manner. I appreciate that sometimes on email the tone of your intent may be misconstrued". Still nothing was done to correct the mistakes. 

On February 18, 2013, Selmani again brought the mistakes in the studies 53820642 and RH01589, to the attention of Defendant Witty, the CEO of the company, specifically, by sending an email advising him of the mistakes in some of the CH clinical studies which had the capacity to cause negative consequences and potential health and safety issues for the general public. In the e-mail, Selmani reported that his current manager, Defendant Kotler, refused to make corrections to the errors in the clinical studies as set forth supra. The errors related to the studies were outlined in the a-mail. They were ignored and the studies were made public on April 8, 2014 in the Journal of Psychopharmacology. 

Selmani sent out various other emails voicing his concerns over the discrepancies, one in July 2013 to James Ford VP Counsel as well as Kenneth James, Head of Research and Development. Furthermore, On June 2, 2014, Selmani sent an e-mail to Defendant Emma Walmsley the company's CEO GSK CH (London, UK). Following this email Selmani was told by Human Resources that he should no longer report to Kotler, however, he was not given another manager to report to.

After 9 months, it appears GSK had a change of heart and told Selmani that he could report to Kotler once again. Unfortunately, for Selmani, it was Kotler who was authorized to conduct his performance review.

No prizes for guessing what happened next folks.

Selmani received low performance scores and was eventually terminated from his employment with GSK on October 17, 2015.

More from the complaint...

Selmani seeks compensatory and punitive damages, attorneys' fees, costs, and such other relief as the Court deems equitable and just.

At all times relevant hereto, Defendants Kotler, Witty, Kennedy, and Walmsly were deliberate co-conspirators of the aforesaid fraudulent and/or illegal activity.

At all times relevant hereto, Defendants Kotler, Witty, Kennedy, and Walmsly knew or should have reasonably known of the aforesaid fraudulent and/or illegal activity.

At all times relevant hereto, Defendants Kotler, Witty, Kennedy, and Walmsly had a duty to properly investigate and/or address the aforesaid fraudulent and/or illegal activity.

At all times relevant hereto, Defendants Kotler, Witty, Kennedy, and Walmsly failed to properly investigate and/or address and/or report the aforesaid fraudulent and/or illegal activity.

At all times relevant hereto, Defendants Kotler, Witty, Kennedy, and Walmsly, by and through their knowledge of and/or complicity with the aforesaid fraudulent and/or illegal activity, aided and/or abetted the same. 

The full complaint can be found here.


Bob Fiddaman.

Lundbeck: Contradiction in Terms

One of the more popular posts on this blog over the past couple of years has been a guest post by Scottish mom, Cheryl Buchanan. In short, Cheryl aborted her fetus at 23 weeks because she was told that its chances of survival were slim due to several defects.

A series of other posts by Cheryl and myself have appeared on this blog and now, it seems, the mainstream media in the UK have taken an interest. All good, I hear you cry - I guess so, it's good when stories like this are highlighted in the British press but, to be honest, journalism isn't what it used to be. In fact, the article, published on Jan 10 in The Express, leaves more questions than answers, questions that really should have been asked by the reporting journalist, Paula Murray.

Her article highlights Cheryl's plight and also tries to offer balance in the shape of a quote from Lundbeck's Medical Director, Dr. Andrew Jones.

Dr Andrew Jones, Medical Director with Lundbeck, said citalopram should not be prescribed during pregnancy unless "clearly necessary and only after careful consideration of risk/benefit".

However, he said there was "considerable evidence" to show that women who stop taking antidepressants during pregnancy are more likely to suffer a recurrence with "greater risks to the woman and her unborn child than the potential risks of exposure to the medication".

Dr Jones added: "We are familiar with Ms Buchanan and have supported her with the information she has requested. It is always a tragic situation when one loses a child. We will not comment on her personal case in public but the safety of Lundbeck’s antidepressants is supported with the large amount of data that has shown no evidence of an increased risk of birth defects associated with treating pregnant women with citalopram."

I left a comment on the Express article suggesting that Jones was having his cake and eating it, sadly, for some bizarre reason, that comment has been removed. Kind of weird given that the journalist in question was given the links to Cheryl's story that have appeared on my blog over the past couple of years.

Why didn't the journalist ask Dr. Jones for the  "considerable evidence" that shows that women who stop taking antidepressants during pregnancy are more likely to suffer a recurrence with greater risks to the woman and her unborn child than the potential risks of exposure to the medication?

Why didn't the journalist ask Dr Jones about the citalopram animal reproduction studies where it was shown that citalopram has been shown to have adverse effects on embryo/fetal and postnatal development, including teratogenic effects resulting in in decreased embryo/fetal growth and survival and an increased incidence of fetal abnormalities (including cardiovascular and skeletal defects) (Source FDA)

Furthermore, why wasn't Jones pushed for an answer in defining the terminology, Possibly, Probably or Certain? There's a whole new can of worms there for anyone seeking that Pulitzer.

Contrast the citalopram animal reproduction studies with the claim of Dr Jones that women who stop taking antidepressants during pregnancy are more likely to suffer a recurrence with "greater risks to the woman and her unborn child - it's a theory folks, one that has been blown out of the water many times by other academics. The citalopram animal reproduction studies is the actual science here and really should have been picked up by the reporting journalist.

Dr Jones is towing the company line, ie; he's keeping lawyers at bay and expectant mothers at risk - throwing in the line, "citalopram should not be prescribed during pregnancy unless clearly necessary and only after careful consideration of risk/benefit", is nothing more than a mandatory disclaimer used by pharmaceutical companies, they know their drugs are being used in pregnancy yet they just sit back and allow it to happen because they believe the prescribing physician is in a better position to judge whether or not the patient will benefit from the drug. Lines such as " women who stop taking antidepressants during pregnancy are more likely to suffer a recurrence with "greater risks to the woman and her unborn child", will always persuade prescribing physicians that antidepressant drugs are a must for depressed mothers - even though this statement is merely a theory.

Begs the question why Jones failed to mention the citalopram animal reproduction studies to the investigating journalist.

Meantime, Cheryl Buchanan remains in limbo and her child, through no fault of her own, remains dead.




Bob Fiddaman.

Back Stories

Citalopram Birth Defects (Guest Post)

Are Lundbeck Luring Pregnant Mothers With a Red Apple?

Lundbeck: Possibly, Probably or Certain about Celexa Birth Defects?

For Ziggy

Bob Fiddaman

The Black Dog at Aston Villa

It's great being a writer, thoughts just come to you when you least expect them, having the ability to change those thoughts into words is not something that everybody has. Practice makes perfect, if you sit and wallow in the thoughts and don't do anything about it then the thoughts will, eventually, fade into oblivion... or they may just consume you.

It's hard going up against mainstream beliefs, especially when those beliefs come from professionals - their argument is, and always will be, "What qualifications do you have to offer such an opinion?" In my case, it's experience. Ten years (almost) of writing and researching antidepressants, pharmaceutical companies and medicine regulators, a large chunk of which has been taken up researching British pharma giant, GlaxoSmithKline, their antidepressant, Seroxat (Paxil) and also researching the British drug regulator, the MHRA.

Close family and friends of mine will know that I am an Aston Villa supporter, all though these days more of an armchair fan, critic. If you know your football (that's the game played with a round ball and the feet) you'll know that Aston Villa currently sit at the foot of the Premiership, having won just one game all season. It's depressing times for all concerned.

Ah, there's that word, 'depressing'.

It got me thinking.

The players and staff at Aston Villa Football Club can't be having it easy, low on confidence and morale, pressure from a strong opinionated set of supporters, ridicule in the press. The loyal fans will also be feeling it. Going to work on a Monday and facing rival supporters of other Midland clubs isn't easy, particularly when all those clubs are having decent seasons.

So, take this scenario - Aston Villa player or backroom staff member, or indeed a fan, has a mild form of depression (who wouldn't) - Now, it's the job of the 'professional' physician to determine just how bad that depression is and to treat it accordingly. "Don't worry, things will get better", really doesn't seem to be an option here, anyone who knows their football will know that Aston Villa are on their way down to the lower league come May.

So, is a lack of confidence or morale treatable?

Yes, of course it is - yet we don't see your modern day footballer sitting in a waiting room at their local doctors. Sorry, these guys are millionaires, so the likes of you and I wouldn't experience that in any event.

Today saw Aston Villa visit lower league Wycombe Wanderers, a full strength starting eleven managed to draw with the minnows (said with respect) - The aftermath of yet another heartless display saw a small minority of Aston Villa supporters air their anger toward club captain, Micah Richards, then later, at the whole team as they boarded the bus to take them back to Birmingham. Both incidents have not gone unnoticed, both being filmed and spread across the internet. I won't provide the links to the footage - you can work it out for yourselves what the reaction was.

So, it would appear that, in this case, the fans are the first to crack. Pent up frustration, anguish, irritability finally rearing their ugly heads after today's match at Wycombe. As a human I fully expect that those Aston Villa players who aced the onslaught of abuse will, tonight, be feeling somewhat stressed out and full of low self-esteem. I'm not one to jump on the bandwagon and say that a professional footballer's wages help soften the blow of such feelings. They are, like me and you, human. It's the fans who put them on the pedastal and make them bigger than what they actually are.

So, two sets of humans (fans and players) both sets experiencing personality changes that we have, for years, been told are signs of depression or anxiety disorders. Our apparent treatment comes in the shape of a pill, an antidepressant that, we are told, can make frustration, anguish, irritability, stress and  low self-esteem magically disappear.

Now, I am not comparing someone's deep depression with losing a football match, be they fan or player - what I am suggesting, however, is that any human being can overcome frustration, anguish, irritability, stress and  low self-esteem. In the case of Aston Villa players it would be to go on a winning streak - this will have a knock-on effect and will please those fans who feel the need (rightly or wrongly) to hurl abuse.

So, why do pharmaceutical companies spend billions of pounds promoting antidepressants for the very same traits mentioned above when, in actual act, all that is needed is a confidence boost?

Have we become so distanced from those 11 men kicking a round piece of leather around, nae, have they become so distanced from us? Truth is, they are humans experiencing stressful times, yet more stress when fans add to their woes by hurling abuse... and not an antidepressant in sight - rightly so.

Frustration, anguish, irritability, stress and  low self-esteem are not, as pharmaceutical companies and psychiatrists tell us, brain diseases. They are not chemical imbalances - they are a set of feelings brought on by a set of circumstances.

Aston Villa's backroom staff will, no doubt, be telling all players that the fans are understandably angry and not to pay too much attention to them as it will hinder their confidence. No doubt the backroom staff will, over the coming weeks and months, be working on boosting morale, confidence and banishing low self-esteem. They will do so by using psychology and not pharmacology.

There's a lesson to be learned here for health care professionals who dish out antidepressants at the drop of a hat to your average human with similar sets of circumstances to all those connected with Aston Villa Football Club.

I'll say it again, frustration, anguish, irritability, stress and  low self-esteem are not, as pharmaceutical companies and psychiatrists tell us, brain diseases.

I'll leave the final words to Bill Shankly, probably said with tongue firmly in cheek but if you are a football fan you will understand exactly where he was coming from.

"Some people think football is a matter of life and death. I assure you, it's much more serious than that." - Bill Shankly

Bob Fiddaman
Villa fan.

MHRA: Back Slaps All Around

The British drug regulator, the MHRA, recently announced glowing highlights for the year 2015, two of which lay claim to their adverse reporting system (Yellow Card)

Dig deeper and you will see the system, despite the self-congratulatory back slaps, is deeply flawed.

Here's why.

MHRA: "We Now Consider This Request Closed"



Bob Fiddaman.

Comic Relief and GSK Form Five-Year Partnership

It's one of those headlines that one would think is parody. You read it right folks, "Comic Relief and GSK Form Five-Year Partnership."

Comic Relief is, in essence, a charity founded in 1985 to try and tackle the famine in Ethiopia. It takes up much of the BBC broadcasting slots under the guise of Red Nose Day, beginning in the afternoon on CBBC, a channel aimed at children, and usually runs throughout the night and early hours of the morning. It's a pastiche of comedy clips featuring world renowned comedians from all over the globe. Their mission - to "bring about positive and lasting change in the lives of poor and disadvantaged people, which we believe requires investing in work that addresses people's immediate needs as well as tackling the root causes of poverty and injustice."

Earlier this year I reported on another children's charity, namely, "Save The Children". I wrote a number of emails to them as I was concerned that a charity, whose main focus was children, had entered into a partnership with a company who had knowingly put children at risk by covering up the suicide link caused by one of their products, Paxil. The series of emails, including responses from Save The Children, can be read here. In short, they told me that they were well aware of Glaxo's history but decided to press ahead with the partnership because, "these risks are outweighed by the benefits of the partnership in helping us achieve our ambitions for children."

GSK are no strangers to Comic Relief. In 2002 they donated $200,000 (Australian) to Comic Relief and announced a fund-raising program in which its drug sales people would visit doctors dressed as clowns. At the time, many accused Glaxo's fund-raising program as having some similarities to its advertising for one of Australia's top-selling anti-depressant drugs. That drug is called Aropax, better known as Seroxat in the UK and Paxil in the US and Canada. (Back story)

Your normal every-day average Brit would take their hats off to Glaxo, particularly with the announcement that they are going to inject £17 million, alongside Comic Relief's £5 million into a fund that will help fight malaria and "improve health" in five malaria endemic countries in sub-Saharan Africa and Asia. (See official GSK press release)

It's obvious that GSK will no longer promote Seroxat via smokescreens but the irony is that since 2002 GSK have paid out compensation to victims of Seroxat, including over 3,000 people who became addicted to Seroxat, over 800 women whose children were born with serious heart defects because of Seroxat, and also being found guilty of Seroxat causing, in part, the death of Donald Schell and his family members.

On the surface GSK's £17 million donation and 5 year partnership with Comic Relief seems generous, however, it should, I believe, carry a cautionary disclaimer.

Here's the reason why - Alastair Benbow: The Devil is in the Details

Nothing more needs to be said.


Bob Fiddaman.