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Reliable sources for medical information


Altostrata

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There's lots of medical information all over the Web. How do you know which you can trust?

 

Here are my rules of thumb (or rule of thumbs):

 

(Note: None of the medical resources formally recognize prolonged withdrawal syndrome.)

 

Take these with a grain of salt:

- Any site selling a supplement

- Any site sponsored by a supplement or drug company

- Any site sponsored by a doctor or other practitioner

- An article that's a press release

- A blog, unless it contains references to an original article and is from an expert

- Any article that does not contain specific references to where the information comes from

 

Here are some sources I trust:

 

General medical information

- Pubmed (US National Library of Medicine National Institutes of Health) http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/ Publishes extracts and some articles from scientific journals and is very comprehensive. However, the primary research articles are difficult to read and understand. What seems to be scary may in fact mean nothing.

 

- Medline Plus www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ This is the lite version of Pubmed, written by consumers

 

- Mayo Clinic www.mayoclinic.com/ Consumer-oriented, helpful tips, recognizes value of complementary medicine and supplements

 

- Harvard Health Publications www.health.harvard.edu/ Also consumer-oriented; the psychiatric information is very conservative and pro-drug, as are researchers associated with Harvard Medical School.

 

more to come

 

Drug information

- PDR Health http://www.pdrhealth.com/home/home.aspx Lite consumer version of the PDR. Doesn't tell you everything you need to know, you need a subscription to the PDR itself.

 

- Drugs@FDA http://www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/cder/drugsatfda/index.cfm A little burrowing will give you US drug label (package insert) history for any FDA-approved drug.

 

more to come

 

Health news

- New York Times

- Washington Post

- Wall Street Journal

- Times of London

 

more to come

Edited by Altostrata
updated

This is not medical advice. Discuss any decisions about your medical care with a knowledgeable medical practitioner.

"It has become appallingly obvious that our technology has surpassed our humanity." -- Albert Einstein

All postings © copyrighted.

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  • 4 months later...

Great list!

I also try to find Discosure Statements of pharma companies that an investigator has ever worked with. Not certain where that is listed, but I bet you do know…

EX: researcher publishes study/case review about drug that is not affiliated/funded by that drug company. Researcher IS on payroll of competitor. Obvious bias, but may not be required to disclose for publication.

This may have changed since I last dealt w it. If so, please delete this message!

Pristiq tapered over 8 months ending Spring 2011 after 18 years of polydrugging that began w/Zoloft for fatigue/general malaise (not mood). CURRENT: 1mg Klonopin qhs (SSRI bruxism), 75mg trazodone qhs, various hormonesLitigation for 11 years for Work-related injury, settled 2004. Involuntary medical retirement in 2001 (age 39). 2012 - brain MRI showing diffuse, chronic cerebrovascular damage/demyelination possibly vasculitis/cerebritis. Dx w/autoimmune polyendocrine failure.<p>2013 - Dx w/CNS Sjogren's Lupus (FANA antibodies first appeared in 1997 but missed by doc).

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The FDA site has histories of all the drug company applications, label changes, etc.

 

Bara, sounds like you have the makings of an investigative journalist.

This is not medical advice. Discuss any decisions about your medical care with a knowledgeable medical practitioner.

"It has become appallingly obvious that our technology has surpassed our humanity." -- Albert Einstein

All postings © copyrighted.

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  • 10 years later...
  • Moderator Emeritus

I've just found this topic and thought I would "bump" it.  Please read it.

 

However, I think these are particularly useful to know about:

 

On 4/2/2011 at 4:47 AM, Altostrata said:

Drugs@FDA http://www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/cder/drugsatfda/index.cfm A little burrowing will give you US drug label (package insert) history for any FDA-approved drug.

 

On 8/6/2011 at 3:52 AM, Altostrata said:

The FDA site has histories of all the drug company applications, label changes, etc.

* NO LONGER ACTIVE on SA *

MISSION ACCOMPLISHED:  (6 year taper)      0mg Pristiq  on 13th November 2021

ADs since ~1992:  25+ years - 1 unknown, Prozac (muscle weakness), Zoloft; citalopram (pooped out) CTed (very sick for 2.5 wks a few months after); Pristiq:  50mg 2012, 100mg beg 2013 (Serotonin Toxicity)  Tapering from Oct 2015 - 13 Nov 2021   LAST DOSE 0.0025mg

Post 0 updates start here    My tapering program     My Intro (goes to tapering graph)

 VIDEO:   Antidepressant Withdrawal Syndrome and its Management

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