Transcript How family doctors can be misled by drug companies

How family doctors can be misled
by drug companies
An example concerning
antibiotic therapy for
Upper Respiratory Tract
Infections
Dr. Guido Giustetto
Florence (ITALY) 27 - 30 August 2006
The booklet “Use the best first”
Italian family doctors received the revolutionary news:
a workshop at The Istituto Superiore di Sanità states that
for upper respiratory tract infections
–
–
to be effective
to avoid antimicrobial resistence
it is necessary to use, from the very beginning,
a powerful wide spectrum antibiotic like moxifloxacin.
What does literature say ?
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
Literature doesn’t support these theses
On the contrary, it advises us to:
–
–
–
–
Use less antibiotics (the CDC estimates that
antibiotic prescribing would be reduced by more
than 40%)
Wait before starting therapy
Choose a narrow-spectrum antibiotic, if antibiotic
is necessary
Save the new antibiotics for severe conditions
What the “real” objective ?

To widen the use of moxifloxacin from
labelled indications (sinusitis only) to any
upper respiratory tract infection

To increase the drug sales
3 communication tecnique tricks

I
Data manipulation

II
Recourse to a third party

III Use of a trademark
Communication trick No. 1
To distort the picture with:

a mixture of correct information and
–
–
–
–
over-alarming statements
misleading references to tables in the text
deliberately truncated quotations
evocative and allusive words
Communication trick No. 2

Recourse to a third party to make the
statements more credible and reliable.
40 specialists
Paul Erlich (deceased in 1915)
Istituto Superiore di Sanità
Communication trick No. 3
The logotype has been invented:
USE THE BEST FIRST
this iconic element
strengthens the verbal
aspect in favour of
a long lasting
memorization
of the message
Conclusion
This booklet
 is not a scientific instrument
 is a misleading promotion pubblication
 attempts to interfere with the doctors’
independent and appropriate therapeutic
choice
 goes against the patients’ best interest
Conclusion
In this booklet
marketing
comes
before
science