Half of doctors routinely prescribe placebos

[Gidget]

Originally Posted by ERCougar

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/24/he...tml?ref=health

What does everyone think about this? I have my thoughts, but I'm curious to hear the patient side.

The only reason this scares me is because there are very serious illnesses out there with very common symptoms. And I do think that sometimes patients have to be consistent if their pain or symptoms never go away. What do you think Doctors?

[ERCougar]

Originally Posted by jay santos

how exactly do you prescribe a placebo?

Prescribing something that has no proven benefit just to be doing something. Antibiotics are probably the commonest example. Homeopathic remedies would be another. You could also potentially add antidepressants, neuropathy drugs, and others to the list.

The problem with antibiotics is that C. Difficile colitis (a superinfection of your intestine that results from antibiotics killing off the normal flora in your gut) is becoming more and more common, and dangerous--I've seen patients have to get a colectomy from this.

[ERCougar]

Originally Posted by Gidget

The only reason this scares me is because there are very serious illnesses out there with very common symptoms. And I do think that sometimes patients have to be consistent if their pain or symptoms never go away. What do you think Doctors?

I don't think this happens very much. It's the doctor's job to be looking out for serious causes to your symptoms. Placebo prescribing occurs after this search has revealed nothing serious, but the patient remains unsatisfied.

[RockyBalboa]

Originally Posted by Archaea

Not all drugs are physiologically dependency creating. Some are only psychologically so.

Well duh, of course Arch, but I was just offering another perspective.

[PaloAltoCougar]

I'm curious how the placebo thing works here in California. I assume it's state law (but perhaps it's only Kaiser policy) that when one receives a new prescription, a pharmacist has to come from behind the magic curtain and patiently explain, with the weariness of a mother telling her kid for the 1,000th time why he has to take a bath, what the drug does, how to take it, and what the possible side effects may be.

I'd love to overhear the pharmacist make an honest presentation when a placebo is involved: "Okay, this drug does absolutely nothing, and has no side effects, unless you are allergic to water or sawdust, in which case you'll die, but that's okay since you're such a loser at life that there are multiple people on your healthcare team who have to participate in a charade so that you can delude yourself into thinking you're recovering from a nonexistent illness. Do you have any questions?"

Seriously, how does a pharmicist explain a placebo without either commiting an ethical violation or blowing the charade?

[creekster]

Originally Posted by PaloAltoCougar

I'm curious how the placebo thing works here in California. I assume it's state law (but perhaps it's only Kaiser policy) that when one receives a new prescription, a pharmacist has to come from behind the magic curtain and patiently explain, with the weariness of a mother telling her kid for the 1,000th time why he has to take a bath, what the drug does, how to take it, and what the possible side effects may be.

I'd love to overhear the pharmacist make an honest presentation when a placebo is involved: "Okay, this drug does absolutely nothing, and has no side effects, unless you are allergic to water or sawdust, in which case you'll die, but that's okay since you're such a loser at life that there are multiple people on your healthcare team who have to participate in a charade so that you can delude yourself into thinking you're recovering from a nonexistent illness. Do you have any questions?"

Seriously, how does a pharmicist explain a placebo without either commiting an ethical violation or blowing the charade?

The article said sometimes doctors prescribe OTC type drugs (like ibuprofen) which either doesn't need a prescription or can be prescribed with minimal instruction.

Alternatively, my guess is the doctors keep some of those tiny little sugar balls that cake decorators use in little pill bottles and when presented with a true wacko they pull these out, tell the patient to take 5 each day but not to tell anyone, because these are the magic pills to cure his disease that the doctor would like to give everybody but can't due to a vast drug industry conspiracy.


Or, maybe not.

[exUte]

Originally Posted by ERCougar

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/24/he...tml?ref=health

What does everyone think about this? I have my thoughts, but I'm curious to hear the patient side.

And how the pharmacy would fill that prescription and yet charge the patient.

[Brian]

so how do you know if you're getting a placebo? what will the bottle say?