Word: prozac
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Hailed as a near miracle for treating depression, Prozac is meeting its critics, including some who claim it induces thoughts of suicide. -- Even borderline hypertension may be risky...
...swift and sweeping popularity is often followed by a stinging backlash. That is as true for medical therapies as it is for hit TV series and fashionable restaurants. The latest example: Prozac, a drug taken to combat depression. Introduced in January 1988 and hailed as safer than competing medications, Prozac quickly surged to star status, thanks to skillful promotion by manufacturer Eli Lilly, glowing word of mouth among doctors and patients, and heavy media attention, including cover stories in Newsweek and New York. Sales are expected to top $700 million this year, making Prozac the leading antidepressant...
...though, Prozac is receiving some unfavorable publicity. Reports have surfaced that the drug can sometimes make users feel suicidal -- just the opposite of the desired effect. Prozac "survivor" groups, which help people who say they have had bad experiences with the drug, have been formed in New York, Indiana, Florida, Iowa and Kentucky. And last week a woman in New York State sued Eli Lilly for $150 million, claiming that Prozac had induced her to slash her wrists...
Despite the new concern, the evidence linking Prozac to suicidal behavior is tenuous and relies mostly on anecdotal histories. The most substantial report appeared last February in the American Journal of Psychiatry. In that study, Dr. Martin Teicher, a research psychiatrist at McLean Hospital in Belmont, Mass., documented the cases of six depressed patients who became obsessed with violent suicidal thoughts two to seven weeks after starting treatment with Prozac. Four tried to hurt or kill themselves. The compulsion subsided after the patients went off the drug...
...nightmare. Nelson's campaign manager called Chiles' late entry "a quirky thing" and huddled in long meetings, trying to figure out what to do. Meanwhile, fellow Democrats and Republicans were quick to strike, circulating rumors about Chiles' mental stability. Chiles admitted that he has been taking the antidepressant Prozac and that it could become an issue in the race...