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"F.D.A. Backtracks And Returns Drug To Market"


Crow

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YEAH!!! Such good news for so many of us. THANK YOU to all who helped by contacting the FDA, your representatives, and all your friends and families and helped bring about this change. Special thanks to all of you who helped on this who don't even use the drug. Those of us who do are indebted to all of you!

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:lol::lol::lol: I can not stop crying!!! I am so happy!!! Wow. My daughter has been having a hard time with her move. Heat and idiots who don't follow through on promises to help have really taken a toll on her. I too far away to help and it is torturing me. At least this worry is done. I AM SO PROUD OF US!!!!!

Louise

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Great news. Thanks for posting.

One question, are we all teenage drug seekers -

"Midodrine treats a condition known as postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome, or Pots. Such patients suffer a severe drop in blood pressure when they stand because blood pools in their legs when vessels fail to constrict. Symptoms range from dizziness to fainting, and the condition is most common among teenage girls."

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Congrats to all those who took the time to express the needs to all those who makes these types of decisions. It shows that concerns are heard and that prayers are answered. I'm so glad for all who use this drug, one less worry! Who would have ever thought such determination who win the day?

Maggie

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Firewatcher, according to the article, Shire has changed their position too and will continue to make ProAmatine.

"On Friday, Dr. Jeffrey Jonas, Shire?s senior vice president of research and development, said the company had changed its stance and would appeal. ?There is substantial evidence the drug does work,? Dr. Jonas said."

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Firewatcher, according to the article, Shire has changed their position too and will continue to make ProAmatine.

"On Friday, Dr. Jeffrey Jonas, Shire?s senior vice president of research and development, said the company had changed its stance and would appeal. ?There is substantial evidence the drug does work,? Dr. Jonas said."

Rachel,

I guess I'm just cynical, but that could simply be a "canned response" brought on by the bad press and pressure. Since they decided to stop selling the drug a year before the FDA "withdrew" it, I'm guessing that they are looking to unload the rights to someone else. This is a political move and politicians (even MDs) will say ANYTHING you want to hear. Actions are completely different. The NY times got several factual elements about POTS wrong for the sake of brevity and completely excluded the other uses for Midodrine like dialysis and the elderly, so I question the context of the quote from Dr. Jonas at Shire. They could be appealing to save face and still not continue to manufacture the drug. Until we know that the drug will continue to be manufactured by some company, I wouldn't stop squeaking.

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Canned response or not, at this point they can't say it is staying on the market and then pull it? Right?!?? I guess that is the article that Debbie from Dynakids called me about yesterday, she wanted to send a NY times reporter to my house to take my photo for the story, except I don't live in NY anymore.

Wooo-hooo!!!! This is fantastic news!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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What with all the disappointments we endure with visits to the doctors, this is indeed great news. Now I can tell my pharmacist that she can once again get midodrine. I know she felt badly when time after time she couldn't supply my needs. Does anyone here recall that snappy tune, 'Happy Days Are Here Again'? I think I heard it ages ago by Mitch Miller and his band. At any rate, this is at least one happy reason to believe that someone cares.

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Great news!! I will feel much better about the whole thing when the FDA makes some sort of announcement. I've been searching their website but haven't seen anything about this. The article said that the FDA "announced" it would keep Midodrine on the market...I wonder where we can go to view this?

All and all, I'm very proud of the effort everyone put in to right this wrong!! Let's hope this decision stands. :)

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This is a political move and politicians (even MDs) will say ANYTHING you want to hear. Actions are completely different. The NY times got several factual elements about POTS wrong for the sake of brevity and completely excluded the other uses for Midodrine like dialysis and the elderly

One of my letters to congressional reps focused on dialysis use of midodrine. Dialysis is covered by the Federal gov.'t under a law signed in 1972 by Pres. Nixon. I pointed out that if they withdrew the drug, how many portable dialysis machines would they have to provide dialysis patients? I also pointed out that the gov't is currently paying for clinical trials of midodrine with spinal cord injuries as VA hospitals. Of course, let's not leave out NASA's use of the drug as astronauts re-enter the atmosphere. If anyone is studied and documented it is definitely the astronauts (bet they got name brand and not generic, too).

It is strictly a matter of no one in government being willing to gather the information they have. My recollection is that the VA trials have endpoints identical to what the FDA required of Shire (use of TT to measure BP at timed intervals, etc.) It is absolutely ridiculous that no one at the FDA could do a survey of the literature to ascertain the information.

The FDA has lost all credibility in my opinion. Going after midodrine as a first line after the GAO got on them for lack of paperwork is glaring in the total lack of regard for the American people.

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I agree with you Reen. I think they just said hey let'spick a drug with one of the lowest usage rates and we will go after them, no one will notice. Not even taking into consideration that there is no alternative. They didn't think that everyone taking the drug would bombard them, the media and their representatives with letters and complaints. Without that attention, midodrine would probably be on it's way out.

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I'm still doing a happy dance that our rag tag little crew of medically disabled folks brought the FDA to it's knees... or at least to where ever they had to stoop to reboot their server ;) after we crashed it with our emails. :D

Seriously folks, here we are, a bunch of folks who have major medical problems, some who cannot function well without help and some like me who scrape along just enough to make it through a work day before completely melting at home, and we STILL were able to pull off a miracle. I'm so grateful to be a part of this place and to call you my friends.

Nina

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I think we have to take it one step at a time. It's amazing that the FDA changed its mind so quickly about midodrine. If that can be accomplished, then the rest should be easier. I don't think the NYT article was necessarily wrong in its description about POTS. At least years ago, when I first developed POTS, the literature said it was more common among young women, although anyone can get it.

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I just came across an article about the possibility of Midodrine being withdrawn and had a near panic attack! I am currently taking 10mg 3x a day and STILL having issues with keeping my BP sufficiently high! I will be following this issue very closely, because without the Midodrine I am headed right back for an in-patient stay at my local hospital, only with no clear resolution!

Sandy

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Chelsea Therapuetics investors still hoping FDA pulls midodrine; other catalyst on tap this month

http://www.smallcapnetwork.com/CHTP-investors-still-hoping-FDA-pulls-midodrine-other-catalyst-on-tap-this-month/s/article/view/p/mid/5/id/79/

I'm glad this drug is doing so well for people with Parkinson's related neurogenic hypotension. However, many of us here do NOT have low Norepi levels and to think that Midodrine, a drug that works for many of us, should be withdrawn because this other drug may soon be available is just crazy. It's like all the people saying that there should be mandated limits on how much salt people are allowed to consume. HELLO!!! Obviously not everyone is alike and to try to force one solution on everyone is ridiculous... not to mention ANNOYING AS ALL GET OUT!!! YEESH!

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Another story, this one in Bloomberg's summary of this week in healthcare...skim down 2 or 3 headlines to find the FDA/Midodrine one

http://www.businessweek.com/lifestyle/content/healthday/642874.html

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