E-drug: Advertising in national formularies (cont)
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I hesitate to enter this discussion, but I do think it is important
to point out that the Physicians' Desk Reference, published
commercially in the US and paid for line by line by drug companies,
is nevertheless among the most reliable sources, in that its contents
are, word for word and comma by comma, reviewed by FDA. Thus, they
are both advertising (in the sense that the
manufacturers underwrite the entries) yet "official" in that nothing
in them contrasts with what the FDA accepts as valid.
Okay, so FDA is not infallible. But the indications, side effects,
etc. that appear in PDR represent what FDA has concluded to be a good
sense of a drug's properties. Many other publications represent
learned opinion, and of course one is free to follow those one trust.
But it is a mistake to dismiss the PDR merely because it is
commercially supported. It offers only government-approved (and
therefore reasonably credible) advice.
James B. Russo
Executive Director
The Partnership for Quality Medical Donations
146 Koenig Road
Bernville, PA 19506
USA
610 488 8303
610 488 7036 (fax)
JBRusso@aol.com
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