Popular and widely-used medicines like phenylpropanolamine
or PPA (found in cough and cold remedies like Vicks Action-500, Solvin,
Wincold), gastrointestinal tegaserod (marketed as Ibsinorm, Tegod, Tegibs),
anti-bacterial gatifloxacin (Gaity) and painkiller nimesulide (Nice and
Nimulid) are under government scanner on concerns raised about their adverse
reactions. The drug technical advisory board (DTAB) will take a decision next
month to ban or restrict the usage of these and other drugs whose combined
market sales are pegged close to Rs.400-500 crore a year.
Other ‘controversial’ drugs, letrozole (used for
infertility treatment in women; letroz), emergency contraceptive drug
levonorgestrel (I-pill and Unwanted 72), and human placenta extract (Placentrex
lotion and gel sold by Albert David) will also be examined by the health
ministry. Besides taking a decision on banning certain drugs or restricting
the use of some, DTAB will examine next month whether emergency contraceptive
pills should be available over-the-counter (OTC) as reports of their misuse
are frequent. It will also take a decision on whether letrozole, approved for
use in breast cancer, should be used for infertility treatment or not, a
health ministry official told TOI.
Earlier this year, the DTAB banned anti-obesity drug,
rimonabant, on account of its serious side effects.
(Pending a formal ban, doctors should stop prescribing and
we should stop using these medicines)
(Source : The Times of India, 1-11-2009)
