Healthy Skepticism Library item: 4404

Warning: This library includes all items relevant to health product marketing that we are aware of regardless of quality. Often we do not agree with all or part of the contents.

Publication type: news

Prescription drug advertisements in medical journals
1992

Abstract:

An analysis of 109 drug advertisements published in United States medical journals was done. The reviewers noted that the advertisements lacked needed references and information on efficacy, appropriate populations, safety and side effects or contraindications. The reviewers rated 60 percent of the ads poor or unacceptable in terms of scientific references. Using criteria similar to those used for reviewing scientific articles, the reviewers would have rejected for publication 17% of the ads and would have required major revisions for another 24%. 50% of the ads had little or no educational value and 59% would not lead to proper prescribing if the physician had no other information. There were 4.3 examples of inadequate, misleading or inappropriate information per advertisement. After monitor over 19,000 prescription drug ads in print media in fiscal year 1991, the Food and Drug Administration took formal regulatory action against an advertiser 217 times. The FDA’s actions consisted of issuing notice of violation and warning letters and requesting that manufacturers publish corrective ads or send letters to pharmacists and doctors correcting ads. The FDA took formal legal action against only two false or misleading ads since June 1991. No ads were rejected in the one journal selected for the study that reviewed ads prior to publication. According to a survey of 221 medical journal editors, 37% of medical journals review advertising prior to publication and only 13% do any sort of peer review of advertising. A number of options are offered for improving pharmaceutical advertising: the FDA could conduct periodic reviews of a sample of prescription drug ads in medical journals; congressional approval to strengthen FDA’s authority to deal with violators of prescription drug advertising regulations could be sought; the Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Association could emphasize to its members the importance of accuracy and truthfulness in advertising and could assist them in improving procedures for reviewing advertisements prior to publication; medical journals could identify specific ways to assure the truthfulness and accuracy of the pharmaceutical ads they publish.

Keywords:
*analytic survey/United States/journal advertisements/quality of information/regulation of promotion/FDA/Food and Drug Administration/EVALUATION OF PROMOTION: CRITICAL APPRAISAL TECHNIQUES/EVALUATION OF PROMOTION: JOURNAL ADVERTISEMENTS/REGULATION, CODES, GUIDELINES: DIRECT GOVERNMENT REGULATION/REGULATION, CODES, GUIDELINES: INDUSTRY SELF-REGULATION