deadliest drugs?????

http://health.msn.com/health-topics/articlepage.aspx?cp-documentid=100198254&GT1=31036

hey, check out drug #7!!! Everybody's favorite! Why does this not surprise me in the least? And I believe #10 is another one currently in clinical trials for UC.

no kidding, huh???? Good thing I'm not much of a pill popper- I figure I have to take enough drugs that are prescribed- the OTC stuff I generally stay away from unless it's really bad.

Yes, you're correct, Pessimist.

"Furberg’s study did not distinguish between medical use and abuse of opioid painkillers, and other research has found that the overwhelming majority of deaths occur in drug addicts, not patients. In addition, most deaths related to opioid painkillers involve taking a combination of four of five other drugs, which makes them seem more deadly than they are."

But they did say in the case of Tylenol that adverse effects (liver damage) can occur when taking doses not much higher than those reccommended.

DocGonzo - I've read that somewhere too.

I find it scarier that acetominaphin is on the list. When I'm in that pain fog, I find it hard to remember if I've taken my tylenol OR darvocet. I guess this is a great reason to start writing when I took the last dose on the bottle...

I knew that about Tylenol too....I always assumed it was from high doses. I think it's fairly common knowledge, re. acetaminophen. I wonder if it is from the latent tb cases, why remicade is on that list. Or it could also be that being on an immune suppressant open one up to a host of other opportunistic infections? Who knows... I suppose some digging coudl turn up the answers, what exactly those Remicade deaths were attributed too. Heck, maybe your GI could even tell you! Suffice to say, the drugs that many of us take are scary- this piece of info is basically why I decided not to try Humira. Bouncing from one drug to another to another...at some point, you have to say "enough!". I find for myself also, I tend to overlook any/all potential dangers with these drugs, & just think of the potential good results. My GI has always told me that these types of drugs, the immune suppressants, carry their own set of potentially serious side effects, & while I believed him, I just never gave it the weight that it deserves. It comes down to the age old question, which is worse, the disease or the "cure"?

http://www.ismp.org/pressroom/PR20070910_1.pdf

here is the actual study/ article- interesting.

wow, scary..........isn't fentanyl one of the drugs now used in the "cocktail" for colonoscopy's? I believe that's what I was given along with another drug or two for my last colonoscopy..........No wonder it worked so well.

Judilyn  - thank you for being the voice of reason.  Articles like these scare me into not wanting to take meds at all.  Thank you for putting the numbers into perspective. 

anyone who can read objectively can see that the figures are just that- actual deaths in a time period, not per x amount of people taking the drug. The media does tend to present things in an alarming way. However, the actual study was in The American Medical Associations Internal Medicine publication- there's no sales going on there! I don't think this study is an "alarming story", nor is it to sell a product... but it is interesting. Certainly you can agree,
Judy- Remicade has been your "wonder drug"- I myself have had gallons of it pumped thru my bloodstream- don't tell me it hasn't crossed your mind "Hey, what exactly is this stuff possibly doing to me???". The implications of being on a newly approved, extremely powerful, immune suppressant long term ought to raise red flags in one's mind! How else is one supposed to make an informed decision?

I absolutely considered the risks before ever starting Remicade. For me, it was a choice of that or a life that wasn't worth living anyway. I made my choice, and I won't waste time second-guessing myself. Yes, immunosuppressants have a greater risk of death than other drugs because they make many people who take them vulnerable to possibly life-threatening infections. I think we're all aware of that.

My comments were primarily in relation to Tylenol, which is a relatively safe drug. The way they handled the numbers makes it look really dangerous. If all the newer NSAIDS hadn't come out, I'm sure aspirin would be at or near the top of the list, too.

Eva, my experience has been much different. I've been on Remi for two years. I've had one cold, and that's it. I think it may be impossible to overcome my immune system! I have no trepidation about taking the Remi, only fear that it will stop working for me.

Nope, it's a maintenance drug for me along with my Colazal. I once went two weeks over my time with the Remi, and had started to have flare symptoms already. It took me five years after my initial diagnosis to get into a decent remission. I was so sick I couldn't have a life. So I'm not really pushing to taper the Remi either. Colazal, Imuran and Entocort together only got me down to about 10 stools a day, bleeding at least three days each week, and pain, pain, pain. I'll take Remi as long as it works and as long as I can, then if there are no other drugs available that will work for me I'll have to have surgery.