Just pick up a prescription of this Cox-2 inhibitor….

Interesting Fact: While studying the drug’s potential as an anti-cancer drug, the National Cancer Institute discovered that…

Those taking 400mg doses had 250% greater risk of dying from heart attack or stroke… and those taking the 800mg doses has 340% times the risk!

Read this report on dangerous-pain-medicines

Source: http://www.my-physical-therapy-coach.com/dangerous-pain-medicines.html

Here’s a potential scenario: 

Let’s just pretend (in this Facebook Shutdown scenario) that I make a comment on my blog about an FDA scandal and I mention that there were reports linking politicians on Capitol Hill with “possibly” influencing choices being made by the FDA.  I post this to my blog which gets distributed through the WordPress blog network and automatically gets posted to my Facebook account as well as on my accounts on LinkedIn,Twitter and some of the other health websites which syndicate/RSS my know-stroke blog like Wellsphere.com.  (Follow me here please, just for illustration of course…)

Let’s just say I go on to mention in my post that a “possibly” tainted FDA committee recommended that Bayer be allowed to keep its problematic birth control pills – sold as Yaz and Yasmin – on the market even though the agency’s adverse events reporting system had turned up higher risks of  blood clots, which can cause deep vein thrombosis, pulmonary embolism, stroke, heart attack and death.  My research for my post reveals that thousands of lawsuits have been filed against the company (Bayer) alleging the pills damaged women’s health.  Even with this evidence against this controversial birth control pill, I report on know-stroke.org that the FDA committee still ruled the benefits of having another birth control option on the market outweighed the risks.

SO, what if this story wasn’t just made up?  What if news of this FDA scandal was really reported earlier this month in Washington Monthly, and The Wall Street Journal  which actually followed up with some juicy details about the financial ties between some of the researchers and Bayer.   Here’s an actual article with a good summary of the scary “funny” business really going on at the FDA, see Conflict of Interest Scandal Rocks FDA by Merrill Goozner.

The point of my article is that my post here, even though sourced correctly and accurate could be deemed a threat and my site shut down (if PIPA/SOPA legislation go through) for sharing details of this “possible” funny business.  Also, by the way,  if you don’t really care about my site but you love Facebook, the proposed two bills in Congress RIGHT NOW, (the PIPA/SOPA legislation) would make the cost of enforcing copyright compliance incredibly high for social sites like Facebook and YouTube,etc..   Could these sites also be liable for not screening/censoring my blog content or perhaps your own uploaded videos?  YES

See how this proposed legislation would make all sites “on the hook” for contributory infringement and their new forced policing role could crush these sites and the way we are able to share information.  Don’t believe me?

Play this TED.com video below “Defend our Freedom to Share (or why SOPA is a bad idea) SHARED on YouTube to draw your own conclusion and see what you can do if you like your internet left alone.

What this legislation really says is that you can’t share until you show US that you aren’t sharing something we don’t like…. scary… I think especially when you look behind the curtain and see who is really being paid to support this proposed legislation.

By David Dansereau for Know-Stroke.org

(I disclose openly that I have no disclosures)

As 2011 winds down I would be remiss if  I didn’t thank you all for visiting my stroke awareness blog over the past year.  

I wish you all success and the best of health in 2012.

Happy and HEALTHY New Year  Wishes from Know-Stroke.org  !!

[My personal sidebar] Best line/take away: Kevin mentions in the article and in his book that his state of mind post-stroke was like ” looking out from inside an aquarium with a low humming sound in the back of his head that never stopped “.  I bet many readers of my blog that are migraineurs/stroke survivors can understand this all too well.

BTW, If you like the article, click below on my Facebook button to Share this post.

The purchase of  this stroke and PFO (patent foramen ovale) data from Closure 1 as well as intellectual property is reported to be ” in the spirit of collaboration and in the interest of advancing scientific and medical understanding”.

posted by David Dansereau for know-stroke.org

FLAGSTAFF, Ariz., Oct 19, 2011 (BUSINESS WIRE) — W. L. Gore & Associates (Gore) today announced that the Company has purchased the assets and intellectual property of NMT Medical, Inc., including the data related to CLOSURE I, a prospective, multi-center, randomized controlled trial of PFO closure with the STARFLEX(R) Device (NMT Medical, Inc.) versus best medical therapy for the prevention of recurrent stroke and/or transient ischemic attack (TIA) in patients with cryptogenic stroke/TIA and PFO….read full press release

The answer as it turns out is not that easy.  I have this patient identification card that identifies me as an official recipient of a septal occluder married now to my ticker.  With my card  I received a one page letter that states  “Dear Recipient:” (that’s me)

Enclosed please find your xxxxxx Occluder implant registration card.  Please keep this card with you at all times.  This card will notify medical staff of your implant in case of  medical emergency, and provides a contact number for us to reach you in case additional information might be needed for your care.  Below are some commonly asked questions about your device:

(skipping to the part on exercise or as close to the part that mentions any physical activity guidelines)

Q: What activities should be avoided after my procedure?  When can they resume?

A:  All strenuous activity should be avoided for one month after the procedure.  Even though you may feel ready to resume your normal activity, you should take it easy for at least one month.

I needed more information so I called the toll free number on my PFO Patient Identification Card.  What I quickly learned was “they (the device manufacturer) don’t set the guidelines, they just make the device”.  I would need to “speak with my physician who implanted the device”.  Honestly, I am not feeling comforted by the device support line these days especially after reading more about PFO device erosion.    I am suppose to feel better after speaking with my physician and having a long discussion about erosion that I have a “good” device.  Frankly, I don’t know what that really means because there is clearly  an accountability problem that needs to be addressed.

Bray Patrick Lake of the PFO Research Foundation posted a great article on better accountability in this industry.   I hope we figure this thing out soon, I don’t want to get a call  “in case any additional information is needed for my care” just because I want to be more active.  I’ll tell you soon how this truth might be getting me in trouble  but for now read Bray’s article on why her fish tank/water heater may be currently better regulated than the individual devices that she and this author have patent.  That’s a shame.

David P. Dansereau for know-stroke.org

Some of the concepts in this video could push the envelope a bit and change how we feel about what age the brain fully develops and how we can perhaps some day “upload” more brain function to ward off decline and perhaps correct insults.

By the way, if you took our poll and  just want the simple wiki answer to the brain development poll from a previous post then here it is:

By the Way:

I Just learned that the University of Rhode Island is hosting an upcoming Honors Colloquium beginning later this month called “Are You Ready for the Future?“  Go to http://www.uri.edu/hc to learn more.  Ed Boyden is one of the invited guests.  If you aren’t planning to travel to Little Rhody you can see all the lectures as they will be streamed live and archived.    I might just make the drive back to my old school to see this one “live”.  See the schedule of events, it looks good.

David Dansereau for know-stroke.org