dana@gatech.EDU (Dana Eckart) (11/06/86)
I am considering participating in a sleep research experiment
(for money :-)) with respect to a new medication currently not
approved by the FDA (except for testing). I would like to ask
the net if anyone knows anything in particular about the medication
below, and if so to send me mail regarding their opinions (and
whether what little I have currently been told about it is correct).
Note: Please don't send me mail about the general dangers of
using my body for medical research.
The drug:
Its name is "s180.0750" and it is a "non benzo-diazepine sedative
hypnotic" (exactly what is this?) made by Lorex phrarmecuticals.
I have been told that it has undergone tests (in human subjects)
in Europe (I don't know if it has been approved by any European
countries for other than experimental use though) and now it is
currently being tested in the states (apparently some tests have
already been conducted in the states so I shouldn't be the first).
I have further been told that the drug can be tolerated in dosages
of up to 90 mg (I'm assuming here that all such dosages are one time
affairs) and that no adverse side effects are seen for dosages below
40 mg. My understanding is that the tests will involve an unknown
amount in the range 0 - 40 mg.
The study is being conducted by Emory University (in Atlanta).
What do people know about this drug? Does it seem relatively safe
to go ahead and participate in the study? Is my understanding of
the drug (what little of it I do understand :-() correct? Any other
relevant information would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks in advance ...
--
j dana eckart
CSNet: dana @ GATech ARPA: dana%GATech.CSNet @ CSNet-Relay.ARPA
uucp: ...!{akgua,allegra,hplabs,ihnp4,linus,seismo,ulysses}!gatech!danadyer@spdcc.UUCP (Steve Dyer) (11/07/86)
>Its name is "s180.0750" and it is a "non benzo-diazepine sedative >hypnotic" (exactly what is this?) made by Lorex phrarmecuticals. >I have been told that it has undergone tests (in human subjects) >in Europe (I don't know if it has been approved by any European >countries for other than experimental use though) and now it is >currently being tested in the states (apparently some tests have >already been conducted in the states so I shouldn't be the first). >... >What do people know about this drug? Does it seem relatively safe >to go ahead and participate in the study? Is my understanding of >the drug (what little of it I do understand :-() correct? Any other >relevant information would be greatly appreciated. A couple of comments. First, it's almost impossible to find any information on a drug if you only have an internal code name given by the drug company; I'd ask the researchers for the official generic name if you're really interested in finding out more about the drug. Once you have that, it's possible to perform a literature search on the drug. There's a good chance the researchers have reprints of research articles, too. "Non-benzodiazepine sedative-hypnotic" really doesn't tell you much other than what the drug is NOT: it's not a member of the Valium/Librium class of sedatives, which all share a common pharmacological profile (though there are some differences between individual agents.) Sedatives like these are described this way simply because most of the new agents being tested and approved these days are benzodiazepines. 20 years ago, benzodiazepines were promoted as "non-barbiturate sedative-hypnotics." Whether participating in any drug study is safe is an individual decision, and you're certainly doing the right thing trying to find out as much as you can before participating. I participated in similar programs at McLean Hospital in my younger days, and they were truly fascinating. On the other hand, most of my friends thought I was foolhardy and crazy. -- Steve Dyer dyer@harvard.HARVARD.EDU {linus,wanginst,bbnccv,harvard,ima,ihnp4}!spdcc!dyer