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I discovered a new-to-me website today and, in the process, I also found out that someone who works for AstraZeneca, the company that manufactures the antipsychotic drug Seroquel, removed information on Wikipedia about the dangers of the drug. Unfortunately for those who take the drug, the deleted information was a warning, mandated by the FDA in May of this year, that teenagers taking the drug “may be more likely to think about harming or killing themselves or to plan or try to do so.” This, of course, could be a deciding factor for those considering taking the drug, and it’s a good reason to get someone already taking the drug into a medical drug detox to get off it asap.

Seroquel is widely used - the 2005 third-quarter report for Seroquel said earnings were $706 million – and it has a number of dangerous side effects. Suicide is obviously the worst of them, but it is not by any stretch of the imagination the only thing you have to worry about. Robert Whitaker reported in his book Mad In America that one in 145 people died during the trials for Zyprexa, Risperdal, Serdolect, and Seroquel. The manufacturers didn’t publish that information: Whitaker got it through the Freedom of Information Act.

I’m not even going to get into drug companies ethics – that’s another story. This story is about a dangerous drug.

I don’t know how many people use Wikipedia as a source of information - I know I do, although it’s not the only source - but if you’ve used Wikipedia to find out about Seroquel, you may not have gotten the whole story. However, you can get it on the Seroquel website, which tells all - including the warnings about suicide and a host of other wonderful things. Read it closely, and then decide whether you really want to be on this drug, or whether you should allow it for someone you care about.

If you or someone you know is on Seroquel and think it might be a good idea to get off it, contact a medically-supervised drug detox center for help. Don’t try getting off it alone – withdrawal from prescription drugs is dangerous.

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