# \[e-drug\] How to analyze drug promotional material? **URL:** \ **Category:** e-drug\ **Created:** [February 28, 2006, 8:48am UTC](https://talk.edrugplus.org/t/e-drug-how-to-analyze-drug-promotional-material/24692 "2006-02-28T08:48:41Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 3\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Imran\_Masood](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/977dab/32.png) [@Imran\_Masood](https://talk.edrugplus.org/u/Imran_Masood)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2006, 8:48am UTC](https://talk.edrugplus.org/t/e-drug-how-to-analyze-drug-promotional-material/24692/1 "2006-02-28T08:48:41Z")
E-DRUG: How to analyze drug promotional material? ------------------------------------------------- Dear E-Druggers I want to conduct a study on content analysis of drug literature, presented to prescribers for promotional purposes (so called "information" about brands/drugs). Can anybody contribute by providing me any article or material to conduct the study efficiently? Regards Mian Imran Masood Assistant Coordinator Pharmaceuticals Advocacy and Research Unit TheNetwork for Consumer Protection Islamabad-Pakistan drimranmasood@gmail.com ---
**Author:** ![Joel\_Lexchin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/49beb7/32.png) [@Joel\_Lexchin](https://talk.edrugplus.org/u/Joel_Lexchin)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2006, 7:03pm UTC](https://talk.edrugplus.org/t/e-drug-how-to-analyze-drug-promotional-material/24692/2 "2006-02-28T19:03:25Z")
E-DRUG: How to analyze drug promotional material? (2) ----------------------------------------------------- Here is a list of articles that discuss the different parts of a drug ad (overall information content, text, references, graphs and pictures/images): 1. Herxheimer A, Lundborg CS, Westerholm B. Advertisements for medicines in leading medical journals in 18 countries: a 12-month survey of information content and standards. International Journal of Health Services 1993;23:161-72. 3. Loke TW, Koh FC, Ward JE. Pharmaceutical advertisement claims in Australian medical publications: is evidence accessible, compelling and communicated comprehensively? Medical Journal of Australia 2002;177:291-3. 4. Lankinen KS, Levola T, Marttinen K, Puumalainen I, Helin-Salmivaara A. Industry guidelines, laws and regulations ignored: quality of drug advertising in medical journals. Pharmacoepidemiology and Drug Safety 2004;13:789-95. 8. World Health Organization. Ethical criteria for medicinal drug promotion. Geneva: WHO; 1988. 9. Lal A. Information contents of drug advertisements: an Indian experience. Annals of Pharmacotherapy 1998;32:1234-8. 10. Lal A, Moharana AK, Srivastava S. Comparative evaluation of drug advertisements in Indian, British and American medical journals. Journal of the Indian Medical Association 1997;95:19-20. 11. Mastroianni PdC, Galduróz JCF, Carlini EA. Psychoactive drug advertising: a comparison of technical information from three countries: Brazil, United States and United Kingdom. Sao Paulo Medical Journal 2005;123:209-14. 12. Vlassov V, Mansfield P, Lexchin J, Vlassova A. Do drug advertisements in Russian medical journals provide essential information for safe prescribing? Western Journal of Medicine 2001;174:391-4. 13. Wilkes MS, Doblin BH, Shapiro MF. Pharmaceutical advertisements in leading medical journals: experts¹ assessments. Annals of Internal Medicine 1992;116:912-9. 14. Hemeryck L, Chan R, McCormack PME, Condren L, Feely J. Pharmaceutical advertisements in Irish medical journals. Journal of Pharmaceutical Medicine 1995;5:147-51. 15. Graphs in pharmaceutical advertisements: are they truthful, are they adequately detailed? , 2001. (Accessed February 15, 2006, at [http://www.ama-assn.org/public/peer/prc\_program2001.htm#truthful.](http://www.ama-assn.org/public/peer/prc_program2001.htm#truthful.)) 18. Lexchin J. How patient outcomes are reported in drug advertisements: review of Canadian medical journals. Canadian Family Physician 1999;45:1213-6. 19. Gutknecht DR. Evidence-based advertising? A survey of four major journals. Journal of the American Board of Family Practice 2001;14:197-200. 20. Villanueva P, Peiró S, Librero J, Pereiró I. Accuracy of pharmaceutical advertisements in medical journals. Lancet 2003;361:27-32. 21. Rothermich EA, Pathak DS, Smeenk DA. Health-related quality-of-life claims in prescription drug advertisements. American Journal of Health-System Pharmacy 1996;53:1565-9. 24. Neumann PJ, Bambauer KZ, Ramakrishnan V, Stewart KA, Bell CM. Economic messages in prescription drug advertisements in medical journals. Medical Care 2002;40:840-5. 25. Gilad J, Moran L, Schlaeffer F, Borer A. Antibiotic drug advertising in medical journals. Scandinavian Journal of Infectious Diseases 2005;37:910-2. 26. Lexchin J, Holbrook A. Methodologic quality and relevance of references in pharmaceutical advertisements in a Canadian medical journal. CMAJ 1994;151:47-54. 27. Cooper RJ, Schriger DL. The availability of references and the sponsorship of original research cited in pharmaceutical advertisements. CMAJ 2005;172:487-91. 30. Lal A, Moharana AK, Chandra P, Ray A. Critical evaluation of references in drug advertisements: an Indian experience. Journal of the Association of Physicians on India 1996;44:778-9. 31. Hawkins J, Aber CS. Women in advertisements in medical journals. Sex Roles 1993;28:233-42. 32. Lövdahl U, Riska Å, Riska E. Gender display in Scandinavian and American advertising for antidepressants. Scandinavian Journal of Public Health 1999;27:306-10. 33. Hansen FJ, Osborne D. Portrayal of women and elderly patients in psychotropic drug advertisements. Women & Therapy 1995(129-141). 34. Ahmed SB, Grace SL, Stelfox HT, Tomlinson G, Cheung AM. Gender bias in cardiovascular advertisements. Journal of Evaluation in Clinical Practice 2004;10:531-8. 35. Leppard W, Ogletree SM, Wallen E. Gender stereotyping in medical advertising: much ado about nothing? Sex Roles 1993;29:829-38. 36. Lexchin J. The portrayal of the elderly in drug advertisements: a factor in inappropriate prescribing? Canadian Journal on Aging 1990;9:296-303. 37. Munce SEP, Robertson EK, Sansom SN, Stewart DE. Who is portrayed in psychotropic drug advertisements? Journal of Nervous Diseases 2004;192:284-8. 38. Scott T, Stanford N, Thompson DR. Killing me softly: myth in pharmaceutical advertising. BMJ 2004;329:1484-8. 39. Ferner RE, Scott DK. Whatalotwegot - the messages in drug advertisements. BMJ 1994;309:1734-6. 40. Kleinman DL, Cohen LJ. The decontextualization of mental illness: the portrayal of work in psychiatric drug advertisements. Social Science & Medicine 1991;32:867-74. 41. Quinn J, Nangle M, Casey PR. Analysis of psychotropic drug advertising. Psychiatric Bulletin 1997;21:597-9. 42. Peppin P, Carty E. Signs of inequality: constructing disability in antidepressant drug advertising. Health Law Journal 2003;11(Special Edition):161-84. -- Joel Lexchin MD Associate Professor School of Health Policy and Management York University 4700 Keele St. Toronto ON Canada M3J 1P3 Tel: 416-736-2100 x 22119 Fax: 416-736-5227 E mail: jlexchin@yorku.ca ---
**Author:** ![Dr\_Peter\_R\_Mansfield](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/c68b51/32.png) [@Dr\_Peter\_R\_Mansfield](https://talk.edrugplus.org/u/Dr_Peter_R_Mansfield)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2006, 3:10am UTC](https://talk.edrugplus.org/t/e-drug-how-to-analyze-drug-promotional-material/24692/3 "2006-03-01T03:10:39Z")
E-DRUG: How to analyze drug promotional material? (4) ----------------------------------------------------- Mian, You can see some examples of content analysis of advertisements at: www.healthyskepticism.org/adwatch.php and www.healthyskepticism.org/other/NZ/healthy.htm for background see: Mansfield PR. Healthy Skepticism's new AdWatch: understanding drug promotion. Med J Aust 2003 Dec 1-15;179(11-12):644-5 [http://www.mja.com.au/public/issues/179\_11\_011203/man10667\_fm.html](http://www.mja.com.au/public/issues/179_11_011203/man10667_fm.html) I hope to find time to write a textbook of the techniques used in drug promotion which would be useful for you and others. regards, Peter Dr Peter R Mansfield peter.mansfield@adelaide.edu.au GP Research Fellow, Department of General Practice, University of Adelaide. Founder, Healthy Skepticism Inc. Countering misleading drug promotion. www.healthyskepticism.org