This Pharmaceutical is Sending More People to the Emergency Room than Prescription Opioids
Alex Pietrowski, Staff Writer
Waking Times
In the midst of a nationwide health emergency, opioid drugs like heroin and pharmaceutical synthetic opiates are killing tens of thousands of Americans each year. We are in a state of emergency over this, yet another type of pharmaceutical drugs is actually sending more people to the emergency room than prescription opioids.
A class of pharmaceuticals used as blood thinners and anticoagulants is often prescribed to patients who are at risk of developing blood clots. Included are the drugs Xarelto, Pradaxa, Eliquis, Warfarin, Coumadin, and Savaysa. In particular, Xarelto is widely known to cause sever adverse reactions and thousands of lawsuits have been filed from around the nation.
“According to Xarelto adverse event reports, patients taking the blood thinner Xarelto may experience more gastrointestinal bleeds and require more transfusions than those taking other less dangerous anticoagulants. Among the complications potentially linked to Xarelto use are the following: Internal bleeding, Gastrointestinal bleeding, Brain hemorrhage, Hemorrhagic stroke, Wrongful death” [Source]
Overall, internal hemorrhaging makes up the greatest portion of complaints against Xarelto, and in 2016, over 26,000 cases were reported, with many of these requiring an emergency room visit.
“It’s a statistic that should raise alarms in the medical community. Patients on blood thinners were 2.4 times more likely to require an E.R. visit than patients who were prescribed opioids—a drug type currently responsible for the nation’s worst drug epidemic.” [Source]
This news is startling and important for those taking these drugs, however, the bigger picture here is that pharmaceutical drugs in general are one of the greatest health risks there is today.
“Estimates dating back nearly two decades put the number at 100,000 or more deaths annually, which includes a study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association in 1998 that projected 106,000 deaths. A more recent analysis estimates 128,000 Americans die each year as a result of taking medications as prescribed – or nearly five times the number of people killed by overdosing on prescription painkillers and heroin.” [Source]
At the same time, pharmaceutical sales representatives are knocking it out of the park these days, selling an ever-increasing amount of drugs to the American public. In 2017, the average salary for pharma reps continues to rise, making it an exceptionally lucrative profession.
“This year the average pharmaceutical sales salary is $128,489 (Median Total $125,500). While these are impressive numbers, specialty pharma reps continue earning significantly more. The average specialty pharma sales salary is $147,318 (Median Total $145,500).” [Source]
In 2014, Boehringer Ingelheim, manufacturer of Pradaxa, paid out some $650 million in over 4000 settled lawsuits, yet the drugs have not been pulled, nor does the general public have much awareness of the dangers.
Read more articles by Alex Pietrowski.
About the Author
Alex Pietrowski is an artist and writer concerned with preserving good health and the basic freedom to enjoy a healthy lifestyle. He is a staff writer for WakingTimes.com. Alex is an avid student of Yoga and life.
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