The popular prescription drug known as Chantix has been linked to a series of traffic accidents, according to the Los Angeles Times. Chantix is prescribed to help smokers kick the habit, but several users of the medication have reported unusual symptoms, such as eyes rolling back in the head, and “blanking out” while driving like an animal caught in the headlights.
Last week, the Institute for Safe Medication Practices said that Chantix has been linked to over 20 recent driving accidents, and reported their findings to the Food and Drug Administration. The Institute theorizes that possible side effects from the drug can be causing a type of seizure in patients which affects driving skills.
The FDA has already issued a warning concerning Chantix, claiming that the medication can cause suicidal thoughts and behavior. The administration is now considering whether it’s warning about the medication should be strengthened. The makers of Chantix, the Pfizer pharmaceutical company, have added a warning on the medication to exercise caution while driving until the patient can ascertain how the medication will affect them.
But Pfizer’s own warning, along with those by the FDA and the Institute for Safe Medication Practices has gone mostly unnoticed by doctors, who continue to prescribe the stop-smoking drug in record numbers.
Until last week, Chantix was even approved for commercial pilots and is still considered OK for long-haul truckers, though the FDA admits that this is a problem. The military, on the other hand, has banned Chantix for its flight and missile crews, and is considering whether to extend this ban to all military personnel, according to the Pentagon.
Chantix was approved by the FDA in 2005. It helps smokers gradually quit by blocking the pleasure receptors that receive nicotine in the brain. This has the effect of reducing cravings for nicotine, and gradually weaning the patient off of cigarettes altogether.
Although there is no doubt that any medication that helps people quit smoking is useful, and can potentially save lives; it is also important to assess the risk involved in using the drug. After all, quitting smoking doesn’t really improve your health if you’re involved in a fatal car accident!
For now, Pfizer is still selling Chantix, and it continues to be the most popular anti-smoking medication on the market. But the FDA is making it clear that doctors need to be very careful when prescribing the drug, and patients may need to avoid driving or operating heavy machinery while using Chantix.
Some people smoke when they are tense, others when they are upset, and others after a meal and so forth. Knowing what triggers the habit is key to developing counter-habits that guard against smoking. This, if paired with developing new habits, is an effective weapon against smoking.
Comment by tomsmoke1 — June 4, 2008 @ 11:29 pm