The FDA advisory committee voted to ban Darvon, generically known as propoxyphene, in the United States.
MedPage Today reports on the 14-12 vote, which was prompted by numerous fatal overdoses, and non-fatal complications, as well as questioning its efficacy.
Anti-pharmaceutical crusader Sidney Wolfe made his presence felt, as he presented data claiming that in 2007, according to data gathered from emergency departments, “503 deaths were ‘related’ to propoxyphene.”
Dr. Wes contrasts these numbers to Tylenol (acetaminophen), saying it was responsible for “more than 56,000 emergency room visits and an estimated 458 deaths from acute liver failure in 2003.”
Does that mean that Tylenol should be withdrawn as well?
Will patients, some of whom chronically require Darvon for pain relief, be the real losers of the FDA advisory committee’s decision?
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I think Darvon (propoxyphene) by itself is much safer than Darvocet (propoxyphene/acetaminophen). I personally see at least ten new Darvocet prescriptions each week with the directions “one to two every four to six hours.” Two Darvocet every four hours . . . that’s 7,800mg of acetaminophen.
There is currently a discussion about this on sermo and currently it runs 80% not in favor of removing this drug from the market.
Possibly warning labels but for some patients this is the only thing that works
It’s not really an equal comparison between Tylenol and propoxyphene, since Tylenol is in much greater use, seeing as it’s non-controlled and available without a prescription. I’m sure the relative risk of death or illness is much, much lower.
But, you probably already knew that.
short acting narcotics are not appropriate, nor are they “required” for chronic pain management.
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