ProHeart 6 warning for dog owners
If you’re a dog-lover like me, and if give your dog a heartworm preventive, which most of us do, please think twice before using ProHeart 6.
Here are some of the despicable lowlights in the history of this product, manufactured by Wyeth (now part of Pfizer):
– 2003: FDA veterinarian Dr. Victoria Hampshire notes that ProHeart 6 adverse reaction reports are increasing. In addition to an unusually high number of deaths, serious side effects include seizures, convulsions, bleeding disorders, lethargy, and jaundice.
– 2004: FDA removes ProHeart 6 from the market.
– 2004: According to ongoing Pharmalot reports, Wyeth executives launch a secret investigation of Dr. Hampshire. They later raise conflict-of interest questions, implicitly threatening FDA officials with further action. Dr. Hampshire was transferred to a different job at the FDA.
– 2008: FDA officials allow a reformulated version of ProHeart 6 to return to market.
– 2008: U.S. Senator Chuck Grassley leads an investigation of the ProHeart 6 affair. In a letter to the FDA commissioner he wrote: “The FDA accepted Wyeth’s allegations at face value and took actions against Dr. Hampshire that may have adversely affected the drug approval and recall processes.”
– 2008: In Pharmalot interview, when asked about her managers at the FDA, Dr. Hampshire replies: “I though my managers were cowardly.”
And she added: “There was no advocate for the public in this story–the people who owned dogs and used ProHeart 6 – but everyone was advocating for the pharmaceutical company. Those dogs (who suffered due to ProHeart 6) were owned by people who, in some cases, undertook financial constraints to care for their pets. But no one in this process advocated for them.”
Next month, the FDA’s Veterinary Medicine Advisory Committee will meet to review 18 months of ProHeart 6 data to determine if the drug–currently on the market–is safe to use.
So right now, I’m advocating for your dog… guilty until proven innocent is the best way to proceed in a case like this. Don’t give Ginger or Max ProHeart 6 until it’s proven safe.
To Your Good Health,
Jenny Thompson
Sources:
“FDA to Review Safety of Controversial Dog Drug” Ed Silverman, Pharmalot, 2/3/10, pharmalot.com
“Barking Up the Wrong Tree: Wyeth & an FDA Vet” Ed Silverman, Pharmalot, 2/13/08, pharmalot.com
