Parkinson's Drug Can Cause Heart Damage

Lee Coleman

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Yesterday we told you about the FDA's withdrawal of the drug pergolide sold under the brand Permax. An earlier study published in January in The New England Journal of Medicine shows that Permax and the drug cabergoline (brand name Dostinex) cause the same kind of damage that led to the the recall of the diet drug Fen-Phen. Dostinex is prescribed for a condition called hyperprolactinemia, where there is excessive amounts of the hormone prolactin in the bloodstream due to benign tumors of the pituitary gland. Permax helps manage symptoms of tremors caused by Parkinson's Disease. The drugs cause valve regurgitation where the valves do not close properly and the backflow of blood can cause fatigue, breathing problems and heart palpitations. The damage can require heart valve replacement surgery. If the problem goes unfixed it can cause heart failure and death. If you or someone you know have taken these drugs you may wish to contact an attorney to find out what your legal rights may be.

"The studies, one of which analyzed the records of 11,417 patients in Britain and one of which tested 245 patients in Italy, reinforce the results of earlier, smaller studies showing drugs that activate a cellular receptor known as 5-HT2b can cause damage to the heart valve, a serious condition that can lead to heart failure and sudden death.

"We recommend that physicians not prescribe drugs that have this biochemical property," said Bryan Roth, a researcher at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, who was not involved in the trials, but viewed the data and commented on it in The New England Journal of Medicine, where both studies appeared."