Emerging Scandals in Mainstream Medicine in the early 60s
Many medicines were used like wonder drugs against many symptoms without knowing the side-effects. For example in 1961/62 it became clear that Contergan, a safe declared drug against morning sickness, sleeping pill and tranquilizer appeared as a medicine damaging the developing of the foetus and hence many children without extremities were born. Some years later, in 1968, Menocil, a wonder drug for reducing the appetite resulted in pulmonary hypertony with sometimes death. In 2001 Lipobay (Bayer), a medicine to lower cholesterol levels and preventing cardiovascular disease resulted in many deaths (renal failure and muscle damage). In 2004 Vioxx, A popular anti-pain medication probably had resulted in as many 55.000 deaths due to heart attack or stroke. In 2008, Abilify, a medicine against depression, bipolar disorder, was used for indications not approved.