Lodotra - my problems with the new miracle weapon against rheumatoid arthritis

Lodotra can´t adapt as well to different dosages as prednisone. It is a drug predominantly for a fixed dosage level and not easy to be tapered. E.g. half mg steps are impossible. Treatment goal is remission and afterwards maintenance with minimum of medication. The first step should be the tapering of glucocorticoids.
Depending on the dose, the price of Lodotra varies between four to sixteen times the price of prednisone.
I think it inappropriate, if the chief investigator of the pivotal study, F. Buttgereit, is a member of the EULAR Committee for recommendations on glucocorticoids in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis at the same time. Study at: http://bit.ly/9KkkcA. EULAR recommendations see: http://bit.ly/aJvZX0.
But perhaps there are even patients, who might benefit from Lodotra; it would be detrimental, however, if only the manufacturer would be profiting.


(Text originally in German. Calculations on German basis – Rote Liste 2010.)

Lodotra – meine Probleme mit der neuen Wunderwaffe gegen die rheumatoide Arthritis

Lodotra lässt sich nicht so gut in der Dosis adaptieren. Es ist eher ein Präparat für eine feste Dosis und nicht zur Dosisreduktion. Halbmilligramm Schritte sind unmöglich. Das Ziel in der Therapie der rheumatopiden Arthritis ist die Remission und dann der Erhalt mit möglichst geringer Menge an Medikatien und als erste Maßnahme sollten Glukokortikoide reduziert und abgesetzt werden.
Je nach Dosis liegt der Preis zwischen dem 4-16fachen von Decortin.
Ich finde es unpassend, wenn der federführende Rheumatologe der Studie (Chief Investigator), F. Buttgereit, auch gleichzeitig Mitglied des EULAR Komitees für die Empfehlungen zur Glukokortikoidtherapie ist. Studie unter: http://bit.ly/9KkkcA. EULAR Recommendations unter: http://bit.ly/aJvZX0.
Die Weltneuheit ist meines Wissens immer noch nur hier in Deutschland erhältlich. Warum eigentlich, wenn es so ein wichtiges Medikament ist? http://www.finanznachrichten.de/nachrichten-2009-04/13617042-weltneuheit-lodotra-r-ab-sofort-in-deutschland-erhaeltlich-007.htm
Aber vielleicht gibt es ja Patienten, die von Lodotra profitieren, denn es wäre fatal, wenn der Profit nur beim Hersteller läge.



Leicht geändert und ergänzt am 09.05.2012

Secret - or how to loose money

In case you want to loose money contact him - otherwise have a hearty laugh!


Von: DAVID RICHARD [mailto:david.richard@btinternet.com]
Gesendet: Dienstag, 18. Mai 2010 23:19
Betreff: DEAREST ONE.

Hi,
I am a British soldier currently in Afghanistan. I am with the 40th Regiment Royal Artillery in Afghanistan. We hijacked a suspected Van painted black between the border of Pakistan and Afghanistan. The Door gunners sitting behind machine guns in the Black Van tried shooting at our direction but we lunched a combat backup attack on the Black Van none of the Taliban survived the attack.

We discovered other currencies including US dollars of about $ 16 million loaded inside the Black Van with so many types of machine guns. We want to move this money out of this place, before we declare other items in the van to the international press. This place is a war zone you will keep our share pending the end of our assignment here in Afghanistan.
We will take 70%. You take 30%. No strings attached, just help us move it out of Afghanistan, Afghanistan is a war zone. We plan to use secured logistics courier to ship the money out in a large box.
If you can help to receive the box for us, I will send you the full details. Kindly send me an e-mail signifying your interest including your most confidential telephone/fax numbers for quick communication also your contact details. This should be a secret and must be a secret between us.

Respectfully,
Gen Sir David Richards (right)

Disclaimer

Disclaimer
The information provided on this website is for the general information of the reader and to help patients become better informed to consult with their own physician. It does not constitute a doctor-patient relationship, and it is not a substitute for professional medical advice. Similarly, comments submitted in response to these posts should not be considered professional medical advice even if the commenter states that he or she is a doctor. You should not use the information on this website for diagnosing or treating a medical or health condition. You should consult a physician in all matters relating to your health, particularly with respect to any symptoms that may require diagnosis or medical attention. All patients have unique circumstances that require the judgment of a professional medical provider. Do not modify your treatment of any condition based on the information provided on this site without consulting with your doctor. You should follow the advice of your doctor at all times, as your doctor is responsible for managing your condition. Medical practice changes regularly. While we strive to be accurate, the information provided may not be comprehensive, and it is possible that medical practice has changed since the time this information was posted. Be sure to consult with your own doctor regarding current practices and procedures. Readers assume responsibility for the use of any information provided herein. This Blog is not responsible for any claim, loss, or damage resulting from the use of this information.

The secrets of personalized medicine:

We ask ourselves, what might be the hidden message behind this term. It’s easy! Treatment of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is so complex that algorithms only work as setting a frame, in which personalized medicine is applied.
The idea, that genetics or serologic factors determine a preferable choice of drug, aren’t new. During the last ten yearsmuch work has been invested, however, we aren’t yet able to make choices on the basis of such parameters.

Genetic Engeneering and Factory Farming

I’ve just readin the New York Times:
Not Grass-Fed, but at Least Pain-Free By ADAM SHRIVER
Recent advances in neuroscience suggest it may soon be possible to genetically engineer livestock so that they suffer much less.
"If we cannot avoid factory farms altogether, the least we can do is eliminate the unpleasantness of pain in the animals that must live and die on them. It would be far better than doing nothing at all."
Read the whole story at: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/19/opinion/19shriver.html?th&emc=th
Great, create bulls who don't suffer in a bull fight! What you call this? I call it bull shit!
Far better for our earth and individual health would be closing/banning all factory farms.

Homeopathy and Traditional Chinese Medicine as believe systems

Recently I exchanged some tweets with @ChineseMedicine:
To @ChineseMedicine True, NSAIDs aren't the only way to treat Ankylosing spondylitis (AS)，there are also biologics .... 你推特的这编文章只关一个病人，不能说是研究。
To @Rheumatologe NSAID drug is not only way to treat Ankylosing spondylitis (AS).... 中醫師：服藥針灸治療僵直性脊椎炎 http://bit.ly/9IDbXl
To @Rheumatologe Neither I, nor the article said this was a research study. 請您再次看清楚這篇新聞的内容沒有任何文字提到"研究."
To @ChineseMedicine The artikel is about one individual - what does it prove? What is it good for? #AS (sorry for the Germanism artikel should be article)
To @Rheumatologe It suggests a possible treatment that might be successful in treating #AS for patients w. special conditions #ChineseMedicine
To @ChineseMedicine It suggests a possible treatment that might be successful in treating #AS ... #ChineseMedicine // Yes, it does, but ...
To @ChineseMedicine #AS #ChineseMedicine // Yes, it does, but it warrants further inquiery and after that studies.
To @ChineseMedicine TCM has a long history, but inductive synthesis cannot come up with reproducible results as causal analysis.
To @ChineseMedicine In order to give TCM its palce in medicine, you need to prove your hypothesis or it stays being a belief system.
To @ChineseMedicine Homeopathy isstill in the state of being a belief system (and that after 200 years) - but that wont change.
To @ChineseMedicine You can compare homeopathy to a taoistic charm that's burnt and the ashes ingested (belief system).
To @ChineseMedicine But a scientific study is always possible. // I might write a little more on my blog soon.

And that’s, what I just did:
Homeopathy (in whole) and Traditional Chinese Medicine (in larger proportions) are believe systems instead of modern medicine. They both have produced a large set of theories and volumes of written material, but so did Astrology. To make this clear, Western Medicine also isn’t free of believe. Science, however, comes to reproducible insights.
The basis of Homeopathy and Traditional Chinese Medicine is inductive synthesis, as described by M. Porkert (Porkert, Manfred (1974). The Theoretical Foundations of Chinese Medicine: Systems of Correspondence. MIT Press. ISBN 0262160587). Western science follows causal analysis, which has produced a system of rules, which leads to reproducible studies. Such a system doesn’t exist in inductive synthesis.
There’s nothing wrong with following a believe system, if there wasn’t a but. You will find some sad cases, where followers of Christian Science didn’t want to use any medicine and the prayers were insufficient to treat meningitis or diabetes for instance (good overview: http://whatstheharm.net/christianscience.html) – leaving the kids dead.
As Mao Zedong said: „Chinese medicine is a great treasure-house!“ (中国医药学是一个伟大的宝库) But I think that there’s a lot of fool’s gold next to the treasures.

To sum it up: to treat diseases and not discomforts/disorders nowadays, patients should be able to judge treatments – and that can only be done, if treatments are scientifically studied.