MP wants safety review on drug
New Federal MP Alannah MacTiernan wants a review of Government funding for the drug Strattera because of concerns about its links with suicidal behaviour in children.
The drug is used to treat attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.
_The West Australian _revealed yesterday that Australia's medicines regulator had warned doctors to weigh up carefully the risk of suicidal behaviour when prescribing the drug after reports of a nine-year-old boy taking his own life and another two children trying to take their own lives.
The Therapeutic Goods Administration said in an update that it had 28 reports of suicidal thoughts in children, some as young as seven, and teenagers.
Strattera was approved in Australia in 2004 and added to the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme in 2007 by then health minister and now Prime Minister Tony Abbott.
There were concerns about serious psychiatric reactions in children but Mr Abbott assured parents Strattera scrips would come with a "black box warning" for patients, doctors and pharmacists.
It was claimed that despite the potential side effects, paediatricians believed the drug was still the best option for the small group of children with ADHD who were unable to take stimulant-based drugs such as Ritalin or dexamphetamine.
But Ms MacTiernan said continuing reports of psychiatric side effects could not be ignored and she believed the Government was leaving itself open to legal action.
She plans to raise the matter at Federal caucus and seek a safety review. "There are question marks about the way it got on the PBS and if there was a comprehensive analysis of all the available data," she said.
"This is a wake-up call to re-examine this and if the Federal Government won't agree to do that, I'll look at getting up some sort of parliamentary inquiry.
"It would be irresponsible not to seek full disclosure, given the drug is expensive to fund and the controversy surrounding it since it was first listed on the PBS."
The Royal Australasian College of Physicians has called for full clinical guidelines for ADHD diagnosis, treatment and management to improve the care of children with ADHD who are at risk of suicide. 'There are question marks about the way it got on the PBS.'" Alannah MacTiernan
