I could swear the voice on the commercial is saying* “Side effects similar to a sugar pill”*. Have y’all heard that, or am I hearing it wrong?
Thanks
Quasi
I heard that too. What does that mean?
My guess is that they’re saying, if you suffer side effects, you are suffering from the same thing as a placebo?
IOW to me it sounds like they are saying, no side effects, or if you do feel something, it’s all in your mind.
That’s what they say. It means the side effects reported by people taking the drug were similar to the effects reported by people taking a placebo in a blind drug study, so they’re saying some of the possible side effects are coincidental and not actually caused by taking the medication.
I figured it meant that among the side effects were tooth decay and weight gain.
Don’t forget the other thing this advert (and others) say:
“If you have heart disease or HIV, make sure your doctor knows this”
I would HOPE my doctor knows this information.
Dr: “Take two Clarinex a day and…”
Person: “Hey doc, I have heart disease and HIV”
Dr: “YOU DO?!?! Hmmm? that’s news to me.”
Person: “But I’ve been coming to you for 8 years and YOU were the one that told me.”
Dr: “Hmmm? Oh well. Nevermind. Don’t take anything. That will be $123.50. Thank you, drive through.”
What I don’t get is why they use the music from Tommy. Are they subliminally claiming it will restore hearing, sight and speech to the deaf, blind and mute?
There are people who will go to a different doctor for different illnesses. They might be seeing a heart specialist on a regular basis but when they have symptoms that they don’t think are related to their heart condition they go to a GP or allergist and don’t necessarily mention the heart condition when the new doctor asks for a medical history. While this may not make sense to you or I, they may see it as a privacy issue.
As a personal example, my wife is diabetic and has several health complications related to this condition; when she sees a podiatrist to be treated for a foot infection he might prescribe one antibiotic over another to avoid aggravating her potential kidney problem, which he wouldn’t know about unless she told him.
I take it they think that the symptoms of allergies are psychosomatic, since IIRC Tommy’s ailments were all due to trauma. I put it down as more contending for “most cynical ad” (the current record holder being Target’s Devo commercial).
“Side Effects may include increased aptitude for pinball and heightened demagoguery. Talk to your doctor.”
I remember hearing that Clarinex is almost identical to Clarintin, and in some cases is even worse. Why then are we now seeing a massive media blitz for Clarinex, and no more ads for Claritin?
Did the Claritin company run out of money for ads or something?
askol
Everyone has already heard of Claritin (due to the aforementioned advertising blitz) and it’s very commonly prescribed.
Since people haven’t heard of Clarinex yet, because it was only recently approved for prescription to people with general allergy symptoms, its manufacturer is now trying to raise awareness with an advertising campaign, hoping that instead of people walking into the doctor’s office and saying, “I need some achoo Claritin,” they’ll walk in and say “I need some Clarinex achoo!”
Desloratadine (Clarinex) is very closely related to loratadine (Claritin) and the effects of the two drugs on allergy symptoms are apparently very similar.
Local paper (Orlando Sent*nel) just ran an article on this about a week ago.
IIRC, the patent for Claritin is about to run out, where the formula will be available for all manufacturers, and the company will lose out on tidy profits.
Solution: introduce a ‘new’ tweaked formula for Clarinex (or “Claritin Redux”) create new patent, advertise (without even mentioning Claritin, since it’s effectively dead in the water) the need for the product, and hence, new profits.
Differences between Claritin and Clarinex:
Claritin covers seasonal allergies:
From claritin.com
[cite]CLARITIN® provides effective relief from seasonal allergy symptoms caused by airborne pollens from trees, grasses, and weeds. It is also effective in relieving the symptoms of ongoing itching and hives of unknown cause.[/cite]
Clarinex covers seasonal allergies as well as pet dander, dust and mold:
From clarinex.com
[cite]CLARINEX® is an antihistamine - a type of medicine that blocks the action of histamine, a natural substance in your body that is released by your immune system during an allergic reaction. Antihistamines are often used to help relieve the symptoms of seasonal and year-round allergies - itchy, watery eyes; sneezing; and runny nose - caused by exposure to allergens such as dust, mold, pet dander, pollen from trees, grasses, or weeds. [/cite]
I suspect the patent issue has a lot to do with it, too. Not only is the patent running out, they are making loratadine (the ingredient in Claritin) available over the counter by end of year.
http://www.usatoday.com/news/healthscience/health/drugs/2002-04-23-claritin.htm
Similar are the “Nexium- the new purple pill” ads, since Prilosec’s patent (currently expired but held up in legal issues) is going away in the very near future.
http://www.forbes.com/newswire/2002/04/23/rtr579205.html
Both are long acting PPI meds, offering 24 hour relief.
Zette
Zette
So the question now is, if your doctor precribes you Clarinex, can you then accuse him of being in the pocket of the big drug companies, or should you just ask him why Clarinex and not the much cheaper, generic version of Claritin?
Yes, you should ask the doctor if Claritin will work just as good for you. My doctor always gives me generics.
There are a lot of new drugs that don’t work any better than older drugs. Of course the drug companies don’t want you to know that because it costs them money.
You should ask your doctor, yes. I wouldn’t accuse them of being in the pocket of big drug companies, but you should ask. More then likely he/she will say that they are trying to treat enviornmental allergies as well as outside allergies.
Zette
When you’re with your doctor, remember what he/she prescribes is for you, no one else. It’s a give and take relationship. If you’re prescribed Clarinex ask if there’s a reason why you couldn’t take Claritin. If you’re prescribed Claritin, ask if there’s a reason why you can’t take a generic instead. Sometimes, the brand-name drug is needed, as generics often contain compounds that aren’t in the original drug and relate to colour/flavour/shape. These compounds can interfere with other meds, and if your doctor’s up on his/her Physician’s Desk Reference, they’ll know it. Or they’re just as influenced by advertisements as the rest of us…
There might be a good reason why you’re being prescribed something else. Don’t be afraid to discuss it.
This is always good practice.
My doctor gave me two prescriptions: one for Clarinex and one for my old faithful Claritin-D (the D means it includes a decongestant). I tried the Clarinex to see how well it worked but eventually switched back to the Claritin. It was worth a shot, though.
RR
Besides all the good reasons you might have to give such information to your doctor, it does seem to me that it’s hard to find a G.P. these days who will remember me from one visit to another and who will bother to read my file.
Recent experience of my sister-in-law, who was in the hospital for pregnancy-related complications (supposedly one of the country’s best maternity hospitals, in the Washington, D.C., area) – every couple of hours, she would have to describe her case in detail to a new nurse or physician coming on duty – nobody could be bothered to read the file and nobody seemed to know what drugs and treatments had already been tried.