Rate of Reports of Negative Drug Reactions Increases

According to a new study published in the Archives of Internal Medicine, the number of official reports of bad reactions to prescription drugs has drastically risen over the past ten years.

Led by the University of Maryland’s Dr. Sheila Weiss-Smith, researchers looked at data from an FDA database which was introduced more than forty years ago. They found that more than half of the reports in this database that involved “adverse events” thought to be caused by medical products and medications were from the last decade.

Each year, the FDA receives about 500,000 reports of health problems and deaths caused by prescription drugs and other medical devices. Between 2000 and 2010, the rate of reports related to medical products increased by more than 11 percent each year. Over that ten year period, the number of reports totaled 2.2, which makes up roughly 55 percent of the entire database.

Dr. Weiss-Smith noted that it is not easy determining why the number of reports continues to grow. It is also difficult to approximate the exact number of problems caused by medical devices and drugs, since only manufacturers are required to report adverse effects to the FDA. Reports made by patients, doctors and other parties are on a voluntary basis and are not required by the FDA.

Unsafe medications and defective medical devices can cause serious injury and even death. If you or a loved one has been hurt by a negative reaction to medication or defective medical product, you may be entitled to compensation. The experienced product liability attorneys at Silberstein, Awad, & Miklos, P.C. have helped clients with Queens product liability, Brooklyn product liability, Bronx product liability, Manhattan product liability and Long Island product liability cases. Call today for your free case evaluation.

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