Public is misled about drug effectiveness, experts say

In the British Medical Journal, experts are warning that doctors and patients are being misled about the effectiveness of some drugs, due to the fact that negative trial results aren’t published. The German experts believe pharmaceutical companies should be required to publish all data, not just positive findings. One example involves the antidepressant reboxetine, they said, which Pfizer maintains is effective. It’s used in many European countries, but U.S. drug regulators rejected it, raising doubts about its effectiveness. The German researchers say there is unpublished trial data relating to this drug that should be made public. In the U.S., it’s already mandated that all data (positive and negative) is published, something the U.K. Is now striving to achieve.

BBC News