46 What about prescription drugs (phentermine, fenfluramine)?
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This article is from the Diet FAQ, by Claudia McCreary cookignnewsletter@chef.net with numerous contributions by others.
46 What about prescription drugs (phentermine, fenfluramine)?
On September 15, 1997 the perscription weight loss aids redux and
fenfluramine were recalled by their manufactureers afte the FDA reccomendeed
a that anyone who is taking them stop and consult with their doctors.
Phentermine, is not affected by the withdrawal, but patients could no longer
use the combination.
The FDA asked manufacturers to withdraw the drugs after reviewing the
records of 291 patients and found 30 percent had abnormal
echocardiograms -- a test that shows doctors how the heart is functioning -
even though they had no symptoms yet. Some 92 patients had problems with
their aortic or mitral heartvalves, the data showed. The FDA said the
numbers were much higher than it had expected, prompting the agency to
recommend stopping salesof the drugs.
The withdrawal comes after doctors at the Mayo Clinic announced inJuly they
had discovered 24 cases of a rare heart valve defect inwomen who took
fen-phen. The FDA later announced that it had received 66 additional reports
ofthis dangerous valve disorder, including some that were also seen
inpatients taking Redux.
These prescription weight loss aids had show somewhat more promise than the
non-prescription nostrums. Fenfluramine (marketed as "Pondimin") suppresses
appetite by acting on the brain chemical serotonin. Phentermine (marketed as
"Ionamin") is an amphetamine-type stimulant and appetite depressant. The two
drugs are often used in combination with each other in order to provide more
effective weight control while minimizing side effects; a study on the
combined effects of the drugs is available at
http://www.weight.com/nongifphenfen.html. The newest addition to the
pharmacological weight-loss arsenal is Redux (dexfenfluramine), which is
essentially the active portion of fenfluramine and is used in smaller doses
than fenfluramine. Studies indicate that these drugs do cause weight loss in
many people, but they can also cause side effects: nervousness, dry mouth,
rapid or irregular heartbeat, etc., in the case of phentermine, while
fenfluramine and dexfenfluramine can cause dry mouth, sleep disturbances,
diarrhea, depression, etc., and have been associated with a few cases of a
serious condition known as pulmonary hypertension. Participants in studies
of these drugs gradually regained the weight they'd lost when they stopped
taking the medication.
Additional information on prescription drugs used in weight control and the
recall of redux and phenfluramine can be found at
http://pharminfo.com/pubs/msb/obesity.html and
http://pharminfo.com/pubs/msb/seroton.html. Barbara Hirsch
(bhirsch@vais.net) maintains a very comprehensive list of medication-related
links on her Phen/Fen Web site at http://www.vais.net/~bhirsch/phenfen.htm.
There is also a newsgroup, alt.support.diet.rx, which is devoted to the
discussion of medications used in weight control.
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