Woke up to this in today's (2/10/05) Wall Street Journal. It looks like sales of Adderall XR have been halted in Canada here is a stock related link http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10000102&sid=aRZHQJnkU4BQ&refer=uk
Holy Moly, it looks like the deaths cited are for folks w/heart troubles, but it sure is shaking me up...

I wonder if they're going to pull it here in the US next....

According to the article our FDA looked at same data last year and did not come to the same conclusions as Canada. On the other hand the FDA has a pretty serious credibilty problem with the Vioxx fisaco.

I think this is very stupid! I'm worried that they might pull the only other 2 stimulants available here - dexedrine and ritalin.

ok this is making me ANGRY
i understand that with ANY drug you can die. even BIRTH CONTROL PILLS ..ok ppl? birth control patches, pills etc...
but why be so alarmist?? IF YOU HAVE A HEART CONDITION DON'T TAKE SPEED
why are doctors giving those that have heart sensitivities adderall??
i will be irate if the USA cows down..

Here is a more detailed link http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10000102&sid=aoI5aS_nPVOs&refer=uk

I was just about to post this.

F_Wcom I doubt many of those people had heart conditions that they knew of. If it is dangerous then I don't blame them for pulling it BUT the people who take it and have a good result should somehow be able to continue taking it. Just my opinion...Don't know if that's even possible.

a station in MN reported on this . . .

they say that the US is not thinking of pulling ADDerall XR off the shelves. Also, that the FDA is confused as to why Canada pulled it, because the 20 deaths and 12 stroke cases occurred over 10 years, and in comparison to other prescription drugs, this is a very small number.
They recommended people be monitored more closely.

PS. Canada hasn't had any deaths due to ADDerall. Interesting, huh?!
The deaths and strokes didn't occur in one country/location.

I am currently taking Bextra for arthritis and it was the only anti-inflammatory that enabled me to sleep through the night. Because of all the media attention, I am nervous that I will have to find another drug. I now understand why people who already have heart conditions were willing to take these drugs, knowing the risks, just to get some relief.

I sure hope they don't pull it, I just discovered it and ADD 6 weeks ago and it has literally transformed my life. I tried XR for 2 weeks and it for some unknown reason behaved quite differently in my body compared to standard Adderall. I found that my BP was much higher on XR and I was on more of a caffeine like high on it. I didnt like this so I switched (and for a couple of other reasons).

Does anyone know anything behind how and why these 20 people died? The first thing that popped in to my mind this morning when reading the NY Times about this was ppl OD'd or ppl with heart problems that probably should not have been on it in the first place were likely suspects. The other thing I tought of was, what dosages were these people taking? I serioulsy would doubt they were taking 10mg personally. I hope they find out that these unforntunate persons who did die was done so out of partly thier own fault. I'd hate to have an entire group of people who benefit form this with little side effects to have to be punished because someone needed to 'concentrate extra' for something and popped 120mg or more at a pop.

Steve

I agree totally!! adderall XR has made such a significant difference in my life..that i will be very UPSET if i am punished because of several deaths. i think with anything in life their are risks.....of death...... adderall has changed my life so much i can not even bear to think I have to go Back to the chaos...My 16 yr old has taken this for over 6 years without any problems either. I believe that some times people over react to drug deaths. I honestly believe you have as good a chance as being hit by a drunken driver or an any other way of death just as easily.; if not more. i pray they do not pull ADDERALL XR off the market in the US. I believe the FDA to be a credible option to healthy choices.

Apparently the deaths were not related to heart conditions. They are SUD deaths. Sudden Unexplained Deaths.

Here is part from the web page.......

FDA ALERT – Sudden Deaths in Children

Health Canada has suspended marketing of Adderall XR products from the Canadian market due to concern about reports of sudden unexplained death (SUD) in children taking Adderall and Adderall XR. SUD has been associated with amphetamine abuse and reported in children with underlying cardiac abnormalities taking recommended doses of amphetamines, including Adderall and Adderall XR. In addition, a very small number of cases of SUD have been reported in children without structural cardiac abnormalities taking Adderall. At this time, FDA cannot conclude that recommended doses of Adderall can cause SUD, but is continuing to carefully evaluate these data.
http://pediatrics.about.com/gi/dynamic/offsite.htm?site=http://www.fda.gov/cder/drug/InfoSheets/patient/adderallPT.htm

I think the FDA are being very careful, and this is to their credit. One thing that I always think of is this......I once had to take heavy medications for my PTSD, however, had there been a scare about the drugs I was taking, I would have decided to stop the medication and either replace it with something else, or cease altogether. PTSD is not a life threatening illness, not in and of itself, although the suicide rate is not good. Our ADHD is not a life threatening illness.

I am more concerned for the children who have no say in whether these drugs [adderall in particular] are administered to them. They take meds as they are told by their parents.

As adults, we are making conscious decisions, and that is our right, but I would not place a child of mine on adderall right now if someone placed a gun to my head.

My point is "the children". :)

Any parent who forces medication on a child without the child's consent is a crappy parent. And any doctor who recommends that a parent do this is a crappy doctor.


Your concern is warranted, however it should not be for children taking Adderall, but rather for children who are unknowingly drugged or forcibly drugged by parents (with any substance).

A good doctor will consult both child and parent with his treatment plan and recommendations. And he will encourage a strategy that works for everyone. (which may include drugs and/or other forms of treatment). The patient needs to play an active role in his/her own progress. You can't expect the treatment to work, otherwise.

a station in MN reported on this . . .

they say that the US is not thinking of pulling ADDerall XR off the shelves. Also, that the FDA is confused as to why Canada pulled it, because the 20 deaths and 12 stroke cases occurred over 10 years, and in comparison to other prescription drugs, this is a very small number.
They recommended people be monitored more closely.
20 deaths and 12 stroke cases phew i thought i had to just worry about a 3.5gpa now i could skip out on some assignments in the long run it doesnt' matter

If they pull Aderral XR why not also pull the regular adderral as well? WHat makes the XR more dangerous than the regular version? I know its time released but you could still abuse the regular stuff and kill yourself?

Regular Adderall was never available in Canada.

This is my first post and sadly it will seem like I am being obstinate - I am sure.

Adderall XR being withdrawn from sale in Canada is devasting for myself and my son. We both take this.

The difference in our lives is immense! I`ll not waffle on about the details, suffice as to say my son is, and always will be, my greatest joy - and to have watched him struggle for so many years and see that resolved taking Adderall XR is something I can never repay my Physician, or the makers of this drug for....

....so imagine my shock last Thursday!

Well I have read everything I can, called the company, health Canada (who were not very helpful) and my Doc....I have researched, honest!

Some of the messages here are so supportive - and wonderful to read. They are right too - there is less risk of dying taking Adderall than if you didn`t take it! - or took certain painkillers or something simple like that.

The real reason for my post is when reading Rhapsody`s post in this thread I was a little confused at the insistence that these were simple sudden deaths - it`s my understanding thay are not.
http://pediatrics.about.com/gi/dynamic/offsite.htm?site=http://www.fda.gov/cder/drug/InfoSheets/patient/adderallPT.htm
This is a link to the same source as Rhapsody quoted, but a different page, and it does detail those poor people who died in a bit more expansive way.

I`m not trying to belittle their deaths, and I feel for their loved oned - but I say this. I will finish my Adderall prescription, as will my child and I`ll try to find a way to continue on it. We tried others - with little success.

I guess all I am saying is - evaluate, research and then decide for yourselves, with your Doctor helping you all the way, just as you would for those anti-biotics, birth control pills, Cox2 drugs and so many other drugs that I am sure will hit the headlines.

Lets not decieve ourselves that putting ANY unnatural substances into our bodies can be TOTALLY safe, and go into things EYES WIDE OPEN.
Respectfully,

lilmama

Is there any activist campaign to reverse this outrageous decision? Ritalin was worse than ineffective for me. I'm a 25 year old fit man and it is ridiculous to think that anyone could send me back to crazytown because of some outrageous prejudice.

Thank God I'm an American. Funny how you can smoke pot--proven 100% toxic--in Canada till you're green in the face but they'll be on you for not wanting to be crazy with a medicine proven safe by decades of use by millions of people.

Every year, I, along with many other New Englanders, take a weekend trip to Montreal. Guess where I'm not going this year! Let's boycott Canada!

My father was taking mental health meds that now have been linked in studies to heart attacks...and he died apparantly of a heart attack...and while I wish his doctors had been more careful, I have no way of knowing that the med was what did it, and even if it were, I'd never recommend getting rid of it for people who do not have risk factors for heart disease (i.e, 25 & fit). My God, the problem is the system, that doctors do not routinely screen people with risk factors for certain diseases.