Comments: The Zyprexa Chronicles: Zyprexa On French TV
I watched the Zyprexa part -- they have Alex talking about Eli Lilly sitting on proof of Zyprexa-driven hyperglycemia and diabetes while actively marketing off-label uses, they have a mother who lost her son who was on Zyprexa, they have a mother whose bipolar daughter gained a lot of weight and developed hyperglycemia, they have the doc who blew the whistle. Then they go to Eli Lilly and ask the PR guy, Does Zyprexa cause diabetes, and he says, Love to answer that but I know that in France it's illegal to advertise drugs on TV, and I don't want to get fined for this interview if I talk about how a particular drug works. They don't seem to believe he's being completely honest with them on this point. Then they go back and talk about how much money Eli Lilly has been making on Zyprexa and how (interview with Yale doc) studies indicate that it's no more effective than older medicines, but has more dangerous side effects.
At the end of the show, btw, they have a French psychiatrist on, and since they've covered an involuntary commitment center and a family-run outpatient care, they ask him for his views on dangerous crazy people. He says there's no way for a medical professional to predict this or that person is dangerous to others because they have a mental disorder. He also says that he wants to make it clear there is no link between mental disorders and violent behavior (presumably in comparison with the general population).
Posted by MvB at September 29, 2007 05:32 PM
C'est indigne pour 60 minutes en Amérique pour féliciter Biederman.
Posted by Stephany at September 29, 2007 08:15 PM
audio doesn't work here. But whatever it is, it's not PC. The title translates as "What to do with dangerous crazies'"
Posted by larry at September 30, 2007 11:02 AM