FDA says one type of generic Wellbutrin XL antidepressant is ineffective

[*GG*]

http://news.consumerreports.org/hea...lbutrin-xl-antidepressant-is-ineffective.html

 

[alex3619]

Oh how can this be? All generics are equal aren't they?

Its nice the see the FDA caught this one.

 

[jimells]

generic citalopram, [etc.] ... are as effective and safe as any of them ...

What a CYA statement! It's like a quit-claim deed to the Brooklyn Bridge: "Any claim I may have to the Bridge is now yours"

I found Welbutrin to be effective... at causing nightmares. When are these people going to get a clue about how useless these drugs are, except for generating big profits? Yes, I know they are as effective as placebos, and if a placebo works, that's great for the patient. But I've never heard of placebos causing the long list of serious adverse effects attributed to antidepressants.

 

[nanonug]

I found Welbutrin to be effective... at causing nightmares.

I know several people who take Wellbutrin with very good results and no nightmares. I am curious, what dosage and how long did you take this?

 

[penny]

When are these people going to get a clue about how useless these drugs are, except for generating big profits? Yes, I know they are as effective as placebos, and if a placebo works, that's great for the patient. But I've never heard of placebos causing the long list of serious adverse effects attributed to antidepressants.

Seriously? Wow. The logic does escape me. It didn't work for you and so "these drugs" are only placebo. Anyway...

Personally, I had very good results with the brand name Welbutrin (this was FOR depression not CFS/ME), but reacted very badly to one of the early generics - more depressed than I had started within a week of the switch, and when I went back to the brand name I bounced back very quickly. The only side effect I had on the brand name was dry mouth - otherwise I felt clear headed and like myself.

I've also found that the different manufacturers of ambien turn out very different results. I know there's one generic that works well for me, then the brand is a close second and then at least two generics that really leave me feeling more wired and tired but not able to sleep. I'm glad the FDA is making even a limited acknowledgement of the variability.

My 2cents - not all generics are bad, but it's quite possible for all 'brands' to be different. Buyer be aware

 

[jimells]

The logic does escape me. It didn't work for you and so "these drugs" are only placebo.

I carefully re-read my post several times, and I fail to see where I stated, "these drugs don't work for me, therefore they are only placebo."

Folks on this forum like to see statements that are backed up by published research, so here goes:

In April 2002 the Journal of the American Medical Association (287:14 April 10, 2002, 1807-14) published a study that ... reported that a positive "full response" occurred in 32 percent of the placebo-treated patients, better than the 25 percent positive full response of the Zoloft-treated patients.

"The Emporer's New Drugs: An Analysis of Antidepressant Medication Data Submitted to the US FDA", Prevention and Treatment 5:23 (july 15, 2002)

57 percent of the trials funded by the pharmaceutical industry failed to show a significant difference between drug and placebo"

In 2000, a Psychiatric Times (17:8 August 2000) article concluded: "In fact, when antidepressants are compared with active placebos, there appear to be no differences in clinical effectiveness"

These references and quotes are from Surviving America's Depression Epidemic, Bruce E. Levine, Ph.D, Chelsea Green Publishing, 2007

 

[penny]

It doesn't sound like you're comparing apples to apples though. While Wellbutrin/buproprion is classed as an antidepressant that does not mean that antidepressant=buproprion.

My understanding is that buproprion does not fall into any of they classic antidepressant classes (SSRI or tricyclic) and in fact is described as 'atypical'. A brief bit from Wikipedia:

Medically, bupropion serves as a non-tricyclic antidepressant fundamentally different to most commonly prescribed antidepressants such as SSRIs.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bupropion

The first reference you give compares placebo results in a St. Johns Wort group with patients treated with Zoloft (not buproprion).

The Second is about a host of other antidepressants, but again NOT buproprion:

"We analyzed the efficacy data submitted to the FDA for the six most widely prescribed antidepressants approved between 1987 and 1999 (RxList: The Internet Drug Index, 1999): fluoxetine (Prozac), paroxetine (Paxil), sertraline (Zoloft), venlafaxine (Effexor), nefazodone (Serzone), and citalopram (Celexa). These represent all but one of the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRI) approved during the study period."

The third reference I can't find the original source article without signing up for a membership to Psychiatric Times, which I don't want to do but considering the date of publication I suspect it also is looking at the earlier classes of antidepressants.

We probably don't totally disagree, I do think antidepressants are generally pretty crap (I actually think they are potentially dangerous) and VERY over prescribed (for dubious reasons) but I would not go so far to say that all of any class of medications are JUST placebo's. I believe brain chemistry is very badly understood and the balance and imbalances of neurotransmitters are very unique, and so I think it takes the right med lining up with the right (or wrong) imbalance at the right time to have positive results. I guess I just think these things are much more complex than "all of x" are "y".

 

[IreneF]

Cymbalta keeps me out of the psych ward.