Roche, creator of Accutane, is removing its acne fighting drug from the market after battling multiple court cases filed by angry patients.
Accutane was approved by the FDA in 1982. It was prescribed for severe cases of acne as a solution when other treatments had failed. The medication came with many risky side effects, such as birth defects, depression and suicide. According to the lawsuits, many of the patients developed inflammatory bowel disease as a result of taking Accutane. In addition, they claimed that they were not adequately warned of the risk.
The company, however, states that their decision to no longer produce Accutane has nothing to do with the lawsuits. They note that there are many other competitors on the market, and many of them are generic formulas. This has resulted in many patients choosing the less expensive treatment over Accutane itself. In an official statement, the company “stands by the safety of Accutane and the rigorous risk-management program Roche developed over decades of cooperation with the FDA.”
Accutane has already been removed in many other countries, such as Spain, Dennmark, France, Germany and Norway. The United States is one of the last to do so.
Fortunately, all is not lost for severe acne sufferers. Coolaser and Coolbeam, both treatments available at Epione Medical Center, are effective in the treatment of acne without chemicals.
Category: Acne, Articles
Tagged with: acneskin | Coolaser | Coolbeam | Lipo-suction | skin
