FDA Investigating Possible Singulair, Suicide Link

Could this be true. I have a six year old on this and from time to time he has said something about i wish i could die. also i care for an eighty year old man that is on this alsoand i ahve to take the both of them for coulsing every month. it there any thing safe in this world any more

What alternative medications are out there for children with asthma. I have an 8 year old that takes Singular everyday. I don't want him taking this drug anymore. I figure for this to make it to an investigation there must be some truth in the allegations- otherwise we never would have heard about it...

connie wrote:

Could this be true. I have a six year old on this and from time to time he has said something about i wish i could die. also i care for an eighty year old man that is on this alsoand i ahve to take the both of them for coulsing every month. it there any thing safe in this world any more

Yes Verginia, this most definately is true, unfortunately. All the drug companies care only for their bottom line with no thought for the people who are desperate to find help for their loved ones. So they churn out new "miracle" drugs and advertise them as the newest god. These people then become guinea pigs for the next ten years or so while the powers that be decide if the drug is safe. This makes me so angry!

Before jumping to conclusions just because a few people have experienced bad side effects consider the pro's and con's of this medicine, and how it works for you or your family. Not all people will experience suicidal or morbid thoughts, not every medicine works the same way for everyone. More and more medicines are coming out each day where they lead to depression and other such complications, but at the same time sometimes they save lives. This medicine doesn't work for my husband, but I know many others who believe it is a godsent. There are many alternatives out there because of medicines not being a one-size-fits-all.

I think I'll wait for the FDA to actually come to some final conclusions before jumping the gun on this one...
Singulair is a very, very popular medication. It's also a bit of an odd one in the asthma community (I've been a severe asthmatic since I was 6), in that it's fairly widely known for either being a miracle med that really helps someone, or it seems to absolutely nothing at all. There doesnt seem to be many people in the in-between.
As for it possibly being linked to suicide...how much of that is simply because of it's popularity and the demographics of the people it is normally prescribed to?
Quote:FDA said it is reviewing a handful of reports involving mood changes, suicidal behavior and suicide in patients who have taken the popular allergy and asthma drug.
Even though the media likes to play scare-tactics and blow things out of proportion...it says "a handful". Given the large number of people who take Singulair, it's likely a fraction of a percentage that these reports are coming from. It may have nothing to do with the drug itself, and more to do with the people who are taking it. Correlation vs causation

I think I'll wait for the FDA to actually come to some final conclusions before jumping the gun on this one...

Singulair is a very, very popular medication. It's also a bit of an odd one in the asthma community (I've been a severe asthmatic since I was 6), in that it's fairly widely known for either being a miracle med that really helps someone, or it seems to absolutely nothing at all. There doesnt seem to be many people in the in-between.

As for it possibly being linked to suicide...how much of that is simply because of it's popularity and the demographics of the people it is normally prescribed to?

Quote:FDA said it is reviewing a handful of reports involving mood changes, suicidal behavior and suicide in patients who have taken the popular allergy and asthma drug.

Even though the media likes to play scare-tactics and blow things out of proportion...it says "a handful". Given the large number of people who take Singulair, it's likely a fraction of a percentage that these reports are coming from. It may have nothing to do with the drug itself, and more to do with the people who are taking it. Correlation vs causation

My 11 year old son has been on singulair for a couple of years and he was just put into therapy because of his preoccupied thoughts of death. I am calling his Doctor tomorrow to see what to do, I have stopped giving it to him. I do need a replacement because it is Spring here in New York.

my son took singular from 06 to 07 for exercise related asthma. During football camp, summer training and football season. While on it he became extremely moody and sometimes violent, I thought it was just a teenage hormone thing or a phase he was going through. His violence involved him breaking his playstation remotes and games and one whole system.(Which he paid for a replaced with his own money from his job). Anyway after he stopped taking it he returned to a "normal" kid again and the violent outbursts stopped. At least now I know I'm not nuts thinking it could've been his medicine.

There are too many posts written by parents sharing the same experiences for there not to be a link. I personally noticed a sharp, instant change in my 15 year old daughter when singulair was prescribed for her in October. It caused major turmoil in our family. I won't go into the details but it was no coincidence. I will be contacting an attorney.

I'm 15 and i've been taking sigulair since i was 7and i haven't had any mood swings or violent behavior. i have really bad asthma and i couldn't run up to when i started taking it. you can imagine a 7 yr old not being able to run and now im on my high school track team!!!

My son, who's 22, has been taking Singulair for a number of years and hasn't exhibited signs of depression. In fact, he's the one who first noted the recent news reports about this, and he commented that he himself doesn't notice feeling depressed. (I went through a divorce a couple years ago, and he moved with me, so he's been through some pretty traumatic changes in recent times. Yet his mood has remained stable.) Nonetheless, I'll be keeping a closer eye on him and will be awaiting the results of the FDA study.

I have bad asthma and have taken singular for many years now. Im a very happy 23 year old that is outgoing and gets along with everyone. But for the last couple years i find myself very irritated like i have no patients for anyone. Its not all the time but id say probably once every ten days or so. Its really no big deal ive never felt violent or suicidal. I just randomly become edgy for no reason. I have no idea if this is related to singular but it makes me wonder. Good luck to all.

I a 48 year old female with asthma and my Dr. put me on Singular several months ago. I had no side effects with the exception of (1)upper respiratory infection which is already noted as being a possible side effect. In essence, this drug has proved very beneficial for me. My wheezing has stopped and I can breathe easier.

I'm not really sure what to make of all of this. I'm 42 and even though Singular has been prescribed to me for years, the regularity on which I take it is spotty at best. My doctor actually got annoyed because he said that it was a huge help in the fight against Asthma and that my symptoms would be that much less severe if I had kept taking the drug on a regular basis.

What I can tell you is that as far as thoughts of suicide go, I don't have any. With me I'm a very moody person to begin with so it's hard to tell if the drug ever had any effect on my behavior but like I said I can tell you any thoughts of suicide are out of the question. I think it depends more on the person taking it than the drug itself.

connie wrote:

Could this be true. I have a six year old on this and from time to time he has said something about i wish i could die. also i care for an eighty year old man that is on this alsoand i ahve to take the both of them for coulsing every month. it there any thing safe in this world any more

in response... this is very much so true, i have been takeing singular for uite some time now and i can tell you first hand i have contemplated suicide maltipal ocasions and had no idea why i would think of it. i don't take the drug now because my younger brother who also took singualr commited suicide on septermber 9th 2007. he was 17 years old and a very happy person somthing like this was the last thing expected from him, take your child off the drug, everyone should