The new blacklist of dangerous drugs from Prescgere magazine

Every year, the medical journal To prescribe publishes its blacklist of drugs to avoid. It brings together all those whose “the benefit-risk balance is unfavorable”, and includes 112 drugs (of which 93 sold in France) which are deemed ineffective or whose side effects are considered too dangerous in relation to the benefit they provide.

On the same topic

For 2021, the review added the following six drugs to its list:

• Propecia (finastéride 1mg) : prescribed in the treatment of male pattern baldness, it carries more risk of side effects than it is effective. This drug has already been the subject of a notice from the National Medicines Safety Agency in December 2019.
• Nootropyl (piracetam): a “psychostimulant” prescribed in particular in case of dizziness and cognitive deficits also presenting dubious efficacy with respect to the risks of undesirable effects (bleeding, nervousness, agitation, weight gain).
• Reporting: this nasal spray solution prescribed in the treatment of depression is indicated for its “very uncertain effectiveness” is “its negative neuropsychic effects”.
• Elidel (pimécrolimus) : used to treat atopic eczema, it is no more effective than a “strong corticosteroid” prescribe but exposes you to risks of skin cancer and lymphomas. This drug is not marketed in France.
• Uniformity (romosozumab): this treatment for severe postmenopausal osteoporosis (not marketed in France) “possibly exposes women to an increased cardiovascular risk, with an increase in mortality in those over the age of 75”.
• Mobic (meloxicam): this non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug is exposed to “an increase in digestive and skin disorders”.

Prescribe also notes that after removing the gliflozines from the list of drugs to be discarded last year (time for a re-evaluation), they return this year because “their unfavorable risk-benefit ratio has been confirmed”.

Drugs removed from the blacklist

Each year Prescicare also removes some drugs from its blacklist. This year is the case for:

• The ulipristal (Esmya): whose European marketing authorization has been suspended for this medicine used in uterine fibroids because it was exposed to “severe liver damage”. Last September, the European Pharmacovigilance Committee (PRAC) recommended its withdrawal.
• Panfurex (nifuroxazide): this antidiarrheal is no longer marketed in France. He exposed “with rare but serious immunoallergic and haematological effects”.
• Ofev et Vargatef (nintédanib): these treatments are being re-evaluated.

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