New York patients might have prescription medications that have not been approved by the FDA to treat the condition they’ve been prescribed for. This is called off-label drug use, and though it is legal and somewhat common, patients could benefit from understanding how off-label drug use works and knowing which of their own medications may have been prescribed this way.
New York patients might have prescription medications that have not been approved by the FDA to treat the condition they’ve been prescribed for. This is called off-label drug use, and though it is legal and somewhat common, patients could benefit from understanding how off-label drug use works and knowing which of their own medications may have been prescribed this way.
An example of off-label drug use is the medication Inderal, which is approved for the treatment of hypertension and other heart related conditions, but is often prescribed by doctors to performers to ease stage fright or performance anxiety. Studies show that approximately one in five prescriptions of common medications are for off-label use. Experts say that off-label drug use can be safe and appropriate, but if a doctor prescribes a drug for a condition without sufficient scientific evidence to indicate that it is appropriate, there is a higher risk of adverse affects.
Children may be more likely to be prescribed a drug for off-label use, because they are often not included in studies that are required for FDA approval. This means that sometimes a child may be prescribed a drug for a condition that it has been approved for in adults, but not necessarily in children.
Some specific off-label drug prescribing is controversial, such as prescribing anti-psychotic medications for patients with Alzheimer’s, and prescribing quinine to treat nighttime restless legs syndrome. Some doctors say that using drugs that are not approved for a condition might be the only option when there is no other appropriate medication available.
Off-label drug use is legal, but some prescription medication errors could be deemed negligence. If a patient is harmed by such an error and the health care professional did not inform the patient of any known risks, a medical malpractice attorney could find it advisable to file a lawsuit seeking appropriate damages.
