Comments on “FDA clears Cymbalta to treat chronic musculoskeletal pain”
SJCRG: Good news, more treatment options for chronic musculoskeletal pain! Here is the link to the FDA press release. “..Cymbalta was first used to treat major depressive disorder in 2004..”
SJCRG: Very interesting is the FDA’s philosophy for drug approval for serious illnesses:
Quoting: “..While these serious side effects have been associated with the use of Cymbalta, they have occurred in less than 1% of treated patients. There are a finite number of drugs available for the treatment of chronic musculoskeletal pain, all of which are associated with rare, serious side effects. There are patients in whom none of the available treatments are effective. ….
So let us do the math: According to the US Govn’t “..An estimated 1.5 million adults had rheumatoid arthritis in 2007….”
…so 15,000 patients are expected to come down with serious side effects.
But “..Since its initial approval, about 30 million patients in the United States have used Cymbalta..[for other conditions]..” Let us do the math now for that larger population: 1% of 30 million= 300,000 patients with serious side effects! half of the Multiple sclerosis popultation in the US!
Please do a careful risk/reward analysis with your doctor if you need Cymbalta, or any of these potent drugs….
Cymbalta is no free ride…
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