Health Highlights: Nov. 12, 2009

Nov. 13 -- Here are some of the latest health and medical news developments, compiled by editors of HealthDay:

FDA Can't Expect All Drug Risk Info in Web Ads: Experts

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration can't expect online drug ads to contain all the required risk information, drug and advertising experts said at an FDA meeting Thursday.

The two-day (Thursday and Friday) session, convened by the FDA in order to get input on how it should regulate drug ads on the Internet, has attracted several hundred drug, advertising and social media specialists, Dow Jones Newswires reported.

The drug industry lobby group Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America suggested that the FDA create a universal logo that would indicate a Web site displays accurate information about drug risks.

But some at the meeting questioned how the FDA could guarantee the accuracy of information when Web sites are often updated daily or even hourly, Dow Jones reported.

It's believed the FDA won't release any drug industry Web ad guidelines or regulations for at least a year.

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Nearly $1 Billion a Year Spent on Blood Thinners in U.S.: Report

In 2007, nearly $900 million was spent in the United States on outpatient prescriptions for blood thinning (anticoagulant) drugs, according to a federal government report released Thursday.

Anticoagulants are used to help prevent blood clots, which can cause heart attacks, strokes and pulmonary embolisms.

About 4.2 million Americans age 18 and older used an anticoagulant in 2007, according to the latest News and Numbers from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.

The average cost and out-of-pocket payment for a brand name anticoagulant was $65 and $29, respectively, compared with $18 and $7, respectively, for generic anticoagulants.

Among the other findings:

• Less than 1 percent of Americans younger than 65 used an anticoagulant in 2007, compared with 6 percent of those ages 65 to 74 and about 10 percent of those 75 and older.
• Among patients who used blood thinners, 74 percent had a heart-related condition, 40 percent had undergone surgery that year, and 30 percent had cancer or diabetes.
• Of the nearly 28 million anticoagulant prescriptions filled by pharmacists in 2007, 19.3 million were for generics and 8.5 million were for brand-name drugs.