Register online | Log in | My Prescrire

Issue contents

• Current issue
• Last 12 issues
• All issues

Topics

• Annual Prescrire Awards
• Advancing healthcare policy
• Positions
• Mediator° - the criminal trial
• Drugs to avoid: 2023 update
• Spotlight

About Prescrire

• Who are we?
• How we work
• AMP: non-profit
• Financing
• No conflicts of interest
• Where to find us
• About Prescrire International
• Testimonials
• Prescrire events
• A global network

Offers

• Subscribe or renew my subscription
• Solidarity Subscription Rate
• Subscribers: register online
• Prescrire's other products
• Free Special Edition
• Sign up to receive the newsletter

english.prescrire.org

Prescrire's other websites

Prescrire.org Formations Prescrire Prescrire Campus Éviter l'Évitable

In Prescrire's Spotlight

Patient characteristics  Editorial  The best treatment option in a given clinical situation is the one that offers the best balance between efficacy and harm, making it the most suitable option for most patients. For most patients, but not all. Because sometimes a patient characteristic shifts this balance to a point where another treatment would be more suitable. Full article available for download (free) 1 December 2023

¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯ Nirsevimab (Beyfortus°) to prevent RSV infection in infants  Marketing Authorisations   Palivizumab was the first drug to receive European marketing authorisation for the prevention of RSV infection. Its use is restricted to certain infants at increased risk of developing severe disease. Nirsevimab, another monoclonal antibody directed against the RSV F protein, has been authorised for the prevention of RSV infection in neonates and infants, including those who have no risk factors for developing severe disease. Does nirsevimab reduce the incidence of severe RSV disease or death compared with palivizumab in infants with risk factors, or compared with placebo in healthy full-term infants? Full article (3 pages) available for download by subscribers 1 December 2023

¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯ Negative post-marketing trials: often ignored  Outlook  Accelerated or conditional marketing authorisation pathways are designed to speed up patient access to potential therapeutic advances. But when post­-marketing trials conducted to evaluate these drugs using clinical endpoints do not confirm the pre-authorisation trial results obtained using surrogate endpoints, drug regulatory agencies and the organisations responsible for cancer guidelines rarely take these negative results into account. Full article available for download by subscribers 1 December 2023

¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯ Ustekinumab (Stelara°): no live vaccines before 6 months of age for infants who have been exposed in utero  Adverse Effects  Infants exposed in utero to an immunosuppressant such as ustekinumab are, as a result, susceptible to serious infections for several months after birth if they are given a vaccine containing live attenuated bacteria or viruses. Full article available for download by subscribers 1 December 2023

¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯ Zonisamide: as dangerous as topiramate during pregnancy?  Adverse Effects  The EMA has concluded that a pregnancy test should be "considered" before initiating treatment with zonisamide. Its close pharmacological similarity to topiramate, which has established teratogenic effects, plus the few available data, indicate the need for caution in women who are, or could become, pregnant. Full article available for download by subscribers 1 December 2023

¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯ France's health technology assessment body: pushed to lower the bar!  Outlook  The HAS's new principles for rating drugs, designed to facilitate access to new treatments, allow lower­-quality evaluation. This may not be in patients' best interests. Full article available for download (free) 1 December 2023

¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯ Drugs to avoid: an analysis of Australia’s pharmaceuticals market  Outlook  A study by Australian academics, based on Prescrire’s annual review of drugs to avoid. Full article available for download (free) 1 December 2023

¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯ Proposed multi-stakeholder platform to improve clinical trials in the European Union  Advancing Healthcare Policy  Prescrire has responded to the consultation on the proposed key priorities for the platform, but chose not to apply for membership, in order to safeguard its independence. Full article available for download (free) 1 December 2023

¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯ Enjoy these features, and more, in our upcoming issues COMING SOON• Abemaciclib and other CDK 4/6 inhibitors: an add-on itherapy n certain breast cancers • Eladocagene exuparvovec in AADC deficiency • Prescribing cascades: recognise them and take corrective action • When to take a safety signal into account: Prescrire's experience  > Subscribe now 1 December 2023

¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯ Covid-19: Follow Prescrire's independent, evidence-based analysis of the pandemic  COVID-19  Prescrire's editors are publishing an ongoing series of articles featuring independent analysis of developments related to the covid-19 pandemic. Useful and practical information, to help health professionals gain a clear and balanced view. 1 November 2023

¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯ New! "Top Texts of 2023", from the editors of Prescrire International  FREE SPECIAL EDITION  Check out this sampling of texts from Prescrire International, a wholly independent monthly drug bulletin, written by and for healthcare professionals. Inside, top articles from sections dedicated to new drugs authorised in Europe and key information on adverse drug effects, plus our annual update of drugs to avoid. > Click here for your free copy 1 August 2023

¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯ Subscribe today for full access to top-quality content from Prescrire International  SUBSCRIBE NOW!  Enjoy access to subscriber-only content available on our website, including every article published in Prescrire International since 1992. Prices for a one-year subscription start at 165 euros (less for students and residents of lower-income countries). 1 January 2022

¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯ Follow Prescrire International on Facebook and Twitter Keep up with the latest from Prescrire's editors, and support our values of independence and quality information, first and foremost in the interest of patients. Click here to > Follow us on Facebook or > Follow us on Twitter 1 January 2022

¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯ Receive the free, monthly "Independent Drug & Healthcare Newsletter" Click here to sign up for the free Newsletter from the editors of the non-profit journal Prescrire International, with highlights of the contents of the latest issue. 1 July 2022

¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯ Drugs to avoid, in the name of better patient care   DRUGS TO AVOID - 2023 UPDATE  Independent French medical journal Prescrire has published its annual update of drugs to avoid. The goal is to make it easier to choose high-quality care, and to prevent disproportionate harm to patients. > Read more

¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯ Read more All the subjects in Prescrire's Spotlight >

• Sitemap |
• Terms of use |
• Contact
• |Top of page

---