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Yet Another Diet Scam Exposed -- Don't Take Diet PILLS!

March 20, 2002

HEALTH

Consumer Group Asks the FDA To Ban the Diet Drug Meridia By JILL CARROLL and THOMAS M. BURTON Staff Reporters of THE WALL STREET JOURNAL   WASHINGTON -- A consumer advocacy group is asking the government to pull the diet drug Meridia off the market, blaming it for 29 deaths and causing high blood pressure and increased heart rates in some of its users. Public Citizen filed a petition with the Food and Drug Administration asking the FDA "to immediately ban the unacceptably dangerous prescription diet drug Meridia." Laura Bradbard, a spokeswoman for the FDA, said the agency would review Public Citizen's petition "and we are looking into the adverse events of Meridia," she said. Roche Offers Support, Perks to Users of Weight-Loss Drug1 02/21/02 Abbott Laboratories of North Chicago, Ill., which makes the drug, said there have been 34 deaths of Meridia patients but that it sees no pattern to the deaths nor any connection to its drug. Abbott said about 16 of the deaths were from cardiovascular problems but a company spokeswoman said they were from different types of cardiovascular problems and don't appear related to the drug. "We've been looking at these cases intensely and we are confident there is no linkage with sibutramine," said Eugene Sun, Abbott divisional vice president for global pharmaceutical development, referring to the generic name of Meridia. Nearly nine million people have taken it, and sales totaled $202 million in 2001. The consumer group, which has successfully campaigned for the removal of several other drugs, said FDA records showed Meridia has been responsible for 397 incidents of serious side effects or death, 143 of whom reported abnormal heart palpitations. "I am quite confident this drug will come off the market," said Sidney Wolfe, director of Public Citizen's Health Research Group, which sent the petition. "It's just needlessly dangerous." The FDA approved the drug in 1997 even after a panel of advisers voted 5-4 that the drug's benefits didn't outweigh its risks. The petition also cites the FDA medical officer in charge of reviewing the drug who raised concerns that the drug was simultaneously raising blood pressure even when people were losing weight. The Italian government banned the drug two weeks ago after two deaths were attributed to its use. Abbott said it was "very unclear that you could attribute" the two deaths there to the drug. Abbott obtained Meridia when it purchased the Knoll Pharmaceutical business from BASF AG of Germany in March 2001. The drug is known as Reductil in much of Europe. In New York Stock Exchange composite trading Tuesday at 4 p.m., Abbott shares slipped 13 cents to $53.38. Write to Jill Carroll at jill.carroll@wsj.com2 and Thomas M. Burton at tom.burton@wsj.com3 URL for this article: http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB1016577368998777960.djm,00.html   Hyperlinks in this Article: (1) http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB1014243895416672120,00.html (2) mailto:jill.carroll@wsj.com (3) mailto:tom.burton@wsj.com Updated March 20, 2002

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