FDA: Thin Blood, Sour Stomach (AZN)(BMY)(SNY)

Health and Healthcare

Published: November 17, 2009 11:37 am

Last Updated: March 26, 2020 12:56 am

The FDA is routinely criticized for being a poor steward of drug research and pharmaceutical side effects. The agency proved once again why much of the criticism is justified.

The FDA today said that two drugs, each of which has been on the market for many years, react badly when taken together. It is a wonder it took so long to figure this out since each of the drugs is very widely used.

Prilosec, an antacid marketed by AstraZeneca (NYSE:AZN), hurts the effectiveness of Plavix which is the world’s most prescribed blood thinner, Plavix is marketed by Sanofi-Aventis (NYSE:SNY) and Bristol-Myers (NYSE:BMY).

Plavix is essential to the treat heart attack victims, patients with vascular stents, and also helps prevent blood clots in the brain. Any drop in its effectiveness is likely to cause real danger to many patients using Plavix.

The FDA is slow to market with news, once again.

Douglas A. McIntyre

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