Doctors And Pharmaceutical Stocks: Conflict Of Interest?

As of about a month ago, I've been battling an infected tooth. The pain has been extraordinary. I liken it to having the side of my face lit on fire and put out with a hammer. It got so bad that I actually thought I may lose what's left of my mind. I went to the walk-in clinic and spoke to the doctor on duty. He looked at the tooth, and prescribed amoxicillin for 14 days. After 14 more very uncomfortable days (and VERY long nights), the infection still hadn't cleared up. I went back to the doctor, and this time he prescribed novo-penicillin for 14 days. Again, same result. Two weeks later I was back again. Third times a charm, or so I hoped. This time he gave me clindamycin. He said this was a step up from penicillin. A little stronger, 10 day program. The 10 days were up 3 days ago, and I'm still in mucho pain. I wondered why he didn't just prescribe me the good stuff right off the bat instead of wasting my time, and money, on the other anti-biotics. This got me to thinking...what if a doctor had stocks in a pharmaceutical company and was prescribing a product that he knows isn't going to do the job? Is it a conflict of interest for a physician to hold stocks in pharmaceuticals? What better position to be in to fatten their wallet than to have stock in a product that they can prescribe whether it is necessary or not? Maybe I'm just being paranoid, but after three turns on the anti-biotic merry-go-round with no real result, I'm starting to wonder. Another concern of mine is now that I've taken these three different drugs, are the little germy buggers in my body going to become anti-biotically resistant super-germies?

Actually if the drug did not work,probably bad guys that make your tooth hurt are already resistant to it.
As far as i know , amoxicillin is almost always first line in these infections because: it is cheap, it usually works, it has relatively subtle side effects. Clindamycin is totally different family. Not given as first line because side effects (rare ones, but sometimes problematic) and because increasing resistance to it is not wise. As for second time - do not know what is novo-penicillin, maybe penicillin v? Can not see reason why if it is so, but not a doctor.
Anyway, these drugs are cheap (relatively) so his shares would not go up very much. However in costly treatments immoral person could play these tricks. But this is a minority of doctors, i suppose (or hope...).

Amoxicillin is tuppence a bucket and has been generic for over a decade.
No-one makes big money from stocks in companies making amoxicillin, it has been first line treatment for dental infection issues for more than two decades and basically is totally useless.


Novo penicillin is penicillin V and is marginally less useless, there are many buggies resistant to it and that list grows as I type this.


Clindamycin is (7S)-7-Chloro-7-deoxylincomycin hydrochloride

so clindamycin is much easier to say. Is especially effective against anaerobic (grow without oxygen present) buggies (found under teeth!!) and mycoplasma also found in your mouth. (can cause a flu like infection too) it is much more expensive and would be expected to clear up the infection pretty quickly.

This is a subject very close to me and mine as my daughter had to have this antibiotic after some idiot doctor (dentist actually) prescribed amoxicillin and .... it didn't work (as I told him it wouldn't) for a tooth infection, she ended up having a general anaesthetic because her mouth was so badly swollen and two teeth removed to prevent the spread of the infection into her Jaw.

The reason I am ranting (please forgive me) is that I work in this industry (as many who have seen my posts already know) and this medical practice of prescribing cheap rubbish to keep practice costs down nearly cost my daughter a week in hospital and serious facial surgery. The drug might work ..ok ok about ten years ago this was true but not now and not in dental infections, and not at the dose prescribed. More like it would be 3000mg yes 3000mg due to tissue penetration issues with the generic drug which is rubbish. The branded version "amoxyil" is still available and the penetration is much better but has equal resistance issues.

This practice of "let's see if it works" rather than lets treat what we see with what we know works, is going to start killing people pretty soon if it hasn't done so already.

How any one thinks by prescribing an antibiotic that may or may not work this is reducing the potential for resistance spreading is beyond belief. This increases the spread of resistance as the situation of a population of already resistant bugs is exposed again to the agent it is resistant to ... this is madness.

To the OP you have my sympathy, and to everyone else! Question your doctor, don't let them get away with "" I think this will work" make them use what they know will work...

And just to prevent all the big pharma sucks hysteria. I don't work in Big Pharma and my comapny does not make antibiotics. I work in drug development and we are a small company. I am also in favour of all drug trial data being released as is my company.

Give the little guys a chance science is science. Not everyone in the pharma game is a blood sucking leech ..

OK rant over sorry for that.

reply to post by subliminaut

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hi

regarding pain in your tooth.
try mms protocol or microelectricity in below links.
very good chance of working.




or try your doctor again.good luck.

[edit on 26-3-2008 by esecallum]

[edit on 26-3-2008 by esecallum]

Deharg: I am fairly sure that most dentists / doctors are quite upstanding. Although you know what they say about bad apples...
I only used Amoxicillin / Novo as an example. There surely must be drugs out there that would be more lucrative to peddle? Cancer or HIV meds for instance.

Esecallum: I am intrigued. Could you please elaborate on mms protocol and the use of microelectricity?