I've spent a half hour mucking around in English-Latin-English dictionaries trying to locate the appropriate word that describes the opposite of placebo. We know that the placebo effect is, in brief, is a benign or, in some cases, non-operative treatment that results in a patient's improvement. Most of the time, we tend to dismiss placebos as a cheap trick played on gullible patients. (There is, just to complicate matters, some science that indicates that the placebo effect may indeed be real, even though we can't explain why. See Michael Brooks' 13 Things That Don't Make Sense.)
Generally, the word placebo is translated as I will please, from Placebo Domino in regione vivorum, for example. My Latin knowledge is from long ago and far away, so I can't find the negation of placebo, I will not please, meaning something that ought to do good, but which the patient believes that it does not do good.
Seroquel is falling into that latter category for me. I've been taking Seroquel in varying doses for quite a while now, close to three years. I've also had some physical symptoms, such as weight gain, pain, and some other stuff, that several specialists have been examining. I had a muscle biopsy last year to try to understand why I had an elevated CK level and unexplained muscle pain.
Today, AstraZeneca announced a reformulation of Seroquel, Seroquel XR, for the treatment of bipolar depression. (Meds such as Seroquel are often prescribed as augmentation to primary depression treatment as well; such has been my case.)
So, I'm reading through the disclaimers, side effects, and other warnings in this new product and discover that, well, read for yourself:
The most common side effects are drowsiness, dry mouth, increases in cholesterol and triglycerides, constipation, upset stomach, dizziness, a sudden drop in blood pressure upon standing, weight gain, increased hunger, tiredness, increases in blood sugar, difficulty speaking, and stuffy nose.Six out of 12.
In addition, from their full prescribing information (PDF):
Neuroleptic Malignant Syndrome (NMS)Bingo. Elevated creatine phosphokinase, also known as creatine kinase (CK), levels.
A potentially fatal symptom complex sometimes referred to as Neuroleptic Malignant Syndrome (NMS) has been reported in association with administration of antipsychotic drugs, including SEROQUEL. Rare cases of NMS have been reported with SEROQUEL. Clinical manifestations of NMS are hyperpyrexia, muscle rigidity, altered mental status, and evidence of autonomic instability (irregular pulse or blood pressure, tachycardia, diaphoresis, and cardiac dysrhythmia).
Additional signs include elevated creatine phosphokinase, myoglobinuria (rhabdomyolysis) and acute renal failure.
I've been using the World Wide Web for a long, long time, and know that there are lots of loony reports of people who take a medication and then discover that aliens are sneaking into their refrigerators and eating their lunches.That's why I've been really careful about trying to rely on authoritative sources, such as the National Institutes of Health and AstraZeneca itself, to find out what might be going on.
Five years ago, there were suspicions that this class of medication might be implicated in some otherwise unexplained findings regarding CK levels, muscle pain, and the like. It's only been recently that the drug manufacturers have been publishing more detailed warnings of the small percentage of patients who might experience some potentially very dangerous side effects. We can only speculate that some of the lawsuits regarding Seroquel, Zyprexa, and their cousins might have something to with the new wave of candor.
As always, don't stop taking meds without consulting with your doctor. Your mileage may vary.
