New version of ‘Levothyrox’ causing serious side effects

Helpline for thyroid patients

FRANCE, Sept 9, (Agencies): A free helpline number (French only) has been set up to assist thyroid patients in France concerned by side effects from taking a revised version of the drug Levothyrox.

The drug is among the most prescribed in France, with three million users with thyroid problems or cancer.

Doctors and health authorities have tried to reassure patients about the new drug. Professor Jean-Christophe Lifante, thyroid specialist at Lyon-Sud hospital, told Le Parisien: “There may be side effects on some patients, but we must calm the controversy because the majority of them are only temporary”.

The National Agency for the Safety of Medicines (ANSM), which set up the helpline, said “the new formula has been demonstrated to be bioequivalent to the old formula” and that “this bioequivalence is the guarantee of identical effectiveness and safety”.

However, many users are not convinced by ANSM’s claims and say they have had serious side effects since the drug was first marketed at the end of March. These include dizzyness, headaches, memory loss, extreme fatigue and worse.

“We are facing a major crisis”, said Chantal L’Hoir, founder of the AFMT (French Association of Thyroid Patients).

Miss L’Hoir, who takes the prescription drug herself, told France Infos: “I found myself with cramp in my thighs like I’ve never had in my life, so much so that I could not walk. I did not dare to drive, I was so dizzy. And I had tiredness like I’ve never felt before. Since I stopped taking the drug, I feel alive again”.

She said other patients she knew of had had it much worse.

“We are not scientists, but I find it deplorable listening to the medical world”, added Ms L’Hoir, who has called for immediate suspension of the drug’s use.

In all, 76,000 people have signed a petition highlighting the side effects of the revised drug.

Manufacturer, Merck, said they “take into account the anxiety caused in some patients by the change of formula of Levothyrox”, but added that “for the vast majority of the three million patients treated with Levothyrox, the transition from the old to the new formula has been successful”.

“To date, a few hundred cases” of effects that can affect the daily lives of patients have been reported, Merck noted, adding that “symptoms reported were identical to those of the old formula” and similar to the symptoms of underactive or overactive thyroid.

Suicide:

Ma Rongrong’s labour pains were unbearable. For hours she had begged for a C-section to ease her agony. After multiple requests were refused, she jumped five floors from a hospital window in northern China to her death.

Ma’s family and her doctors have blamed each other for denying her the surgery that could have eased her suffering.

The tragedy has attracted intense attention in China, with many wondering how Ma could be denied such a common procedure.

There is no clear answer, but the incident has sparked a national discussion on everything from the high cost of health care and patients’ rights to the dangers of traditional Chinese family values.

The conversation reached fever pitch this week after leaked security footage showing Ma on her knees in front of her family in a hospital corridor went viral.

In response to the uproar, the official People’s Daily said in an editorial that no matter who is ultimately to blame, the incident should serve as a national wakeup call.

Malaria:

Niger has launched a campaign to destroy mosquito breeding sites in the capital in the wake of heavy rains that have lashed the city since June.

Health Minister Iliassou Mainassara said the operation will help combat the spread of deadly malaria in Niamey.

During a 20-day campaign which began on Thursday, spray guns mounted on pick-up vehicles will treat areas that have been transformed into swamps by flooding.

The liquid pesticide is not harmful to humans and animals, the minister said.

The floods have killed 41 people across Niger since June, according to the civil protection agency, after more than 50 deaths last year.

The operation is a joint exercise with Cuba, which pledged support for a malaria control programme across the country in 2014.

Malaria kills around 2,000 people, mainly children, every year in Niger and is responsible for around 80 percent of visits to doctors during the rainy season.