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Meridia Safety Actions : Meridia Side Effects : Public Citizen Petitions Meridia

Meridia Weight Loss Pill

    OCTOBER 2003
    "Abbott’s Meridia Continues to be Plagued With Deadly and Dangerous Side Effects"

    Meridia has continued to receive negative press regarding the serious and deadly side effects that have been reported. Public Citizen already renewed the call for federal regulators to ban Meridia in the beginning of September. According to the consumer advocacy group, since March 2002 when it initially petitioned the FDA to ban Meridia, it had found an additional 30 cardiovascular deaths in Meridia patients. Read More....

  • Meridia weight loss pill’s release closely followed the previously recalled diet drug fen phen that was linked to fatal heartvalve damage and PPH (primary pulmonary hypertension) that just recently had its Nationwide Class Action Settlement Agreement become final for the deaths and injuries that occurred in the estimated 6-7 million Americans that took the diet drug. FDA approval of Meridia weight loss pill came with a continued concern for potentially serious and life threatening Meridia weight loss pill side effects and was described as being just “moderately effective” by the FDA. In 2000, after Americans spent $1.8 billion in weight loss pills, 95% of the people said they failed to lose weight. Still, after just one year on the market there were nearly 2 million prescriptions written for Meridia weight loss pill.

  • On March 19, 2002, Public Citizen consumer advocacy group petitioned the FDA for the immediate removal of Meridia weight loss pill from the market. Public Citizen director Dr. Sidney Wolfe stated that “there is no evidence that this drug has prolonged the life of a single patient, or reduced the risks of strokes or heart attacks tied to obesity.” Abbott continues to maintain Meridia weight loss pill is an effective and necessary aid to obesity. The consumer watch group has identified Meridia weight loss pill to pose as the same level of risk that has so far resulted in the deaths of at least 29 Americans. Less than 10% of all adverse reactions to prescription drugs are estimated reported to the FDA, leading many to believe the number of actual Meridia weight loss pill deaths and serious health complications experienced are severely underestimated.

  • If you have taken Meridia weight loss pill and would like to learn more about your legal rights, please contact us.
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Meridia Safety Actions

Public Citizen, the consumer advocacy group, has filed a petition asking the FDA to immediately remove Meridia weight loss pill from the U.S. market. Since 1996, Public Citizen has petitioned for the removal of four other FDA approved drugs, including one other diet drug. Three of the drugs were banned and one was severely restricted. The evidence that the drugs endangered the lives of those prescribed to take them contained “clear evidence of danger before their FDA approval” according to Public Citizen, which they have also seen in Meridia weight loss pill. The FDA’s own advisory board voted 5-4 against the approval of Meridia weight loss pill, but one year later the FDA overruled it. The FDA has received criticism for their willingness to approve drugs that have not yet fully demonstrated their safety implications to the fullest. When approving Meridia weight loss pill, the FDA described the weight loss pill to be only “moderately effective” at managing obesity and warned of its use with different existing conditions in individuals.

If you have taken Meridia weight loss pill and would like to learn more about your legal rights, please contact us.

Meridia Side Effects

According to the FDA database, the launch of Meridia weight loss pill (sibutramine) has now been associated with 29 deaths, including 19 from cardiovascular adverse effects in what Public Citizen calls a “minimally effective drug.” The FDA medical officer reviewing Meridia weight loss pill had written, “sibutramine has an unsatisfactory risk-benefit ratio and therefore this Reviewer recommends non-approval of the original submission” and was concerned mainly with the significant increases in blood pressure and heart rate in many of the people. Though the FDA did warn that people with hypertension, heart disease, or irregular heartbeat or stroke should not take Meridia weight loss pill, the majority of deaths that have resulted have been the result of cardiovascular problems. The FDA’s approval of Meridia weight loss pill from the start has been questioned due to the agency’s own classification of the diet pill being “moderately effective” and the health concerns linked to the drug.

If you have taken Meridia weight loss pill and would like to learn more about your legal rights, please contact us.

Public Citizen Petitions Meridia

Sidney Wolfe of Public Citizen consumer advocacy group believes Meridia weight loss pill should have never been put on the market after the FDA advisory committee and physician in charge of Meridia recommended against its approval. Abbott Laboratories maintains Meridia weight loss pill (sibutramine) is safe despite the fatalities that have been linked to the use of the weight loss drug. Close to 9 million people have taken Meridia weight loss pill (sibutramine) so far, according to Abbott. Abbott’s VP of pharmaceutical development does not see a link between the use of sibutramine and the deaths that have been reported.

The labels on Meridia weight loss pills warn against potentially serious cardiovascular side effects. The label warns that individuals with already existent elevated blood pressure avoid Meridia weight loss pill because of the increased risk of heart complications. There have been questions of whether or not the Meridia weight loss pill side effects that have been associated to the recent deaths are due to inappropriate patient selection, but it has been found that sibutramine causes increased blood pressure in patients who have normal blood pressure. The FDA will now be considering Public Citizen’s petition and determine if the Meridia weight loss pill side effects are acceptable or if the safety issues outweigh the benefits.

If you have taken Meridia weight loss pill and would like to learn more about your legal rights, please contact us.

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