News: Jury favors AstraZeneca in Seroquel trial
A jury decided AstraZeneca provided adequate warnings about side effects of Seroquel causing diabetes. The month-long trial in New Jersey has been carefully watched by 26,000 people with similar claims. The 7-1 ruling left unanswered whether the drug used to treat schizophrenia and bipolar disorder contributed to the onset of diabetes. . .
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Did You Know: 345,000 people with a mental illness are in prisons.
Read more from the American Prospect....
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News: Psychiatry and torture
As the current war on torture itself turned to torturing prisoners in Guantanamo, and during rendition, has the military asked psychiatrists to violate ethical boundaries and even international agreements? The 9.11 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine discusses the tensions imposed by military service for psychiatrists, including certifying soldiers for redeployment....
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Consider This: Lunch is okay, but pencils are not

Pharma wriggles
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News: BBC psychiatrist suspended for plagiarism
In a hearing before the Britain's General Medical Council, Dr. Raj Persaud admitted to plagiarizing four research papers for a 2003 book, and from other scholarly articles for publication in the British Journal of Medicine and The Independent. Persaud hosted shows on BBC radio and television....
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News: Drug funding for psychiatrists questioned
Psychiatrists who failed to report receiving a combined $4.2 million from 15 drug companies since 2000 were the subject of a Senate inquiry according to information released by Sen. Charles Grassley (R-Iowa) (top left). The three Harvard doctors -- Joseph Biederman (see left), Thomas Spencer, and Timothy Wilens -- mentioned by the senator have been aggressive proponents of medication management for ADHD and bipolar disorder in children and Biederman is a popular conference speaker for parents and educators. His 300...
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Consider This: When disclosure isn't enough
Pharma, the APA, and the media
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News: Funding The Infinite Mind
Slate.com kicked off a controversy when it posted a story challenging the credibility of a segment about Prozac aired on The Infinite Mind, noting that neither the panelists nor the host disclosed a connection to Eli Lilly. Bill Lichtenstein, producer of the award-winning show shot back that they turned to the best experts to answer a question about "links between antidepressant medications and out-of-control behavior." The controversy is entering a new phase with NPR weighing in about the show it...
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News: Journal asks full disclosure
An editorial in the April 2nd issue of the New England Journal of Medicine decries lack of transparency when special interest foundations support biomedical research and publications promoting their special interests....
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