Neurontin Side Effects
Neurontin received FDA approval in 1994 only for the treatment of partial seizures to supplement other drugs that did not work alone. At that time, Pfizer started an intensive marketing campaign that urged doctors to prescribe Neurontin for off-label uses—those for which the drug was neither intended nor approved.
Marketing drugs for unapproved uses is illegal for good reason: It can be dangerous for consumers.
Various off-label uses
Some conditions for which Neurontin is not FDA-approved but is nevertheless occasionally prescribed include bipolar disorder, pain, migraine headaches, attention deficit disorder, restless leg syndrome, Lou Gehrig’s disease and obsessive-compulsive disorder. Pfizer purposely marketed Neurontin for such unapproved uses.
Neurontin’s side effects include convulsions and suicidal tendencies.
Soon after its approval, a number of Neurontin side effects showed up, some mild and some disastrous. Children have been found to be especially susceptible to the psychological effects of Neurontin.
Neurontin and suicide
In April 2005, the FDA issued a warning and listed many possible adverse reactions to Neurontin, including one that is anything but “mild”: suicide. A year before the FDA made its warning, more than 100 people taking Neurontin had committed suicide, and that number was up to 258 by March 2005. More than 2,000 had made the attempt.
Neurontin side effects were initially believed to be minimal when used according to recommended guidelines. However, since Neurontin has been prescribed for other uses, many patients have been put at risk for suffering Neurontin side effects.
Pfizer’s creative marketing
Neurontin sold poorly until Pfizer began to promote it for off-label use although it was becoming clear that patients were at risk for Neurontin side effects. In 2001, the FDA found that one of Pfizer’s marketing brochures for Neurontin was misleading and told the company to discontinue its use.
Consumer advocates, such as the watchdog group Public Citizen, have criticized the FDA’s slowness to halt aggressive drug promotion, which has allowed more people to suffer Neurontin side effects.
Neurontin has grown into a blockbuster worth $1 billion annually, some 90% of which has been attributed to off-label sales that endanger patients for Neurontin side effects.
