Evaluating Risk/Benerfit ratio for Prescription Drugs

[Guest guest]

Dr.Bruce West,DC in his newsletter Health Alert of August 2011 clearly

explains the underlying truth that Most Prescription Drugs Do Not Work for Most

People. It was a suspicion we had, but the hard statistical data from the

same actual trials and other peer reviewed medical literature produced by

the best medical literature that can be used to demonstrate it.

It boils down to quantifying the actual benefit that the patient receives

from taking a drug.

Most prescriptions are taken because the drug companies can point to the

Relative Risk Reduction due to the drug.

For example the relative risk of suffering a heart attack is reduced by 50%

if you take a drug, BUT upon closer examination the actual number of heart

attacks in the group on the drug is 1% compared to 2% in the placebo

group. The actual difference in survival is 2% minus 1% or 1%. 1 Person will

benefit by not having a heart attack and the other 99 people will not

benefit.

To get the Number of Patients Needed to Treat in order to Save 1 patient

Divide 100% by % difference between the two groups.

In this case 100% divided by 1% or 100 patients must be treated to benefit

1 patient.

Each patient has to make their own decision, but make sure you have ALL the

information, Usually your doctor does not give you this part of the story.

A few Emergency Medicine physicians whose backgrounds are at

_http://www.thennt.com/about-us/_ (http://www.thennt.com/about-us/) have

gotten together

to go through the statistical analysis of some of the more commonly used

drugs and have posted detailed results at _www.thennt.com_

(http://www.thennt.com)

You are entitled to all the facts and numbers in making your health

decisions and this site is an excellent addition to the information you need to

make an informed choice in deciding for yourself what treatment you feel is

worth the risk.

Arnold