The medical journal Prescrire drew up Thursday for the thirteenth consecutive year a list of medications to exclude because they are “more dangerous than useful“Among the drugs authorized in France or in the European Union, which were analyzed by the independent review, 116 are particularly singled out, of which 88 are marketed in France. Prescrire considers that other therapeutic options “have a better benefit-risk balance” that certain medications she recommends avoiding.
Among the medications not recommended, Smecta and its derivatives, well known to the general public because they are regularly prescribed by doctors for intestinal disorders. According to the review, the therapeutic effect of these medicated clays is not well demonstrated. In addition, the review reminds that they are not completely safe since they contain natural traces of lead.
Adverse effects
In this black list, there are drugs whose effectiveness has been demonstrated but which can be replaced by other treatments with fewer adverse effects, assures the review. This is the case for Voltarene, a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug. “This one has more adverse effects, particularly cardiovascular ones, than the others, therefore more myocardial infarction, more heart failure”explains Pierre Chirac, pharmacist, editor at the magazine Prescrire, at the microphone of France Culture this Friday.
Phloroglucinol is also highlighted. This medicine is used for painful periods. In 2023, 26 million boxes have been reimbursed in France. However, its effectiveness has hardly been demonstrated and it causes allergic reactions in particular, deplores the review. “It’s a shame for Social Security resources to spend money on medications that are not effective and can have side effects.“, believes Pierre Chirac.
Note the return of Fenfluramine to the list among the drugs to be excluded. It is an amphetamine authorized for severe forms of epilepsy in children. It was removed from the list of drugs to be excluded last year in order to assess its benefit-risk balance in a new indication, Lennox-Gastaut syndrome which is a rare type of epilepsy. “The analysis of clinical evaluation data showed that, in this situation also, the benefit-risk balance of fenfluramine is unfavorable“, explains the magazine Prescrire.
