Pharmacovigilance, the process of identifying and responding to drug safety issues, is finally having its day in the world of podcasts. What's interesting is that the podcast became a hit, especially by shedding light on side effects. On a recent epic road trip to the Motor City, listening to podcasts for hours made the long drive go by in no time. I usually listen to audiobooks, but after driving down a long, boring stretch of highway in a state I'll never remember, I needed a break from British mystery novels. I started listening to news podcasts and found that there were some great shows with several episodes dedicated to side effects. Especially for news-based podcasts, including ours. Power to the patient. Before heading back for the drive, I did some research and loaded up on a podcast that had side effects as its main focus. When it comes to podcasts that solely cover pharmacovigilance, there are two that stand out to me.
As we become more aware of drug side effects and the science and process required to achieve them, podcasts have become one of the best ways to learn more about pharmacovigilance. Podcasts have become a daily ritual for Americans. consume newsthat's how half of Americans listen.
I listened to two types of podcasts. The first included episodes dedicated to how side effects play a role in larger issues such as healthy living and trending news. The second category was dedicated solely to side effects. If podcasts fit into your routine, he recommends six of the best podcasts that talk about side effects. If you haven't tried them yet, these simple methods are a good place to start.
Quick Hits: Hot Side Effects
While not all podcasts are solely focused on side effects, they are often an important part of a larger theme.
in Medshadow's own podcast, Power to the patienthost Dr. Leal Rosenthal Interview with author, chef, and Chopped Champion Brooke Siem How she spent most of her adult life on antidepressants and barely survived the side effects. Siem's book “May Cause Side Effects” examination Powerful and relatable content from Culture Desk. Her interview on our podcast is equally fascinating.
The Daily In the New York Times
new york timesThe Daily podcast features timely and informative episodes about the most newsworthy drug of the moment: Ozempic. That episode, Ozempic weight loss era, we delve into how a diabetes drug that causes weight loss as a side effect became a rock star in the pharmaceutical industry. In this episode, we introduce you to two women who used it for weight loss and overcame the physiological and psychological side effects of their journey.If you are interested in knowing what the fuss is about about this new drug. Whether it is a safe option for weight lossthis episode is informative and easy to understand.
Submit a report At the Washington Post
washington postThe podcast “Post Reports” has a great episode.Coronavirus, MPOX, and Rabies: A Tale of Three Viruses”, where experts discuss recent global responses to three viruses and how their experiences can help prevent and respond to new viruses and epidemics in this post-pandemic world. As you may have sensed a theme here, major newspapers have the resources and journalistic power to produce podcasts that tackle drug safety's biggest issues in an informative and accessible way, and Post Reports is one example.
trade off
Finally, Tradeoffs is one of my favorite podcasts. Tradeoffs, led by Dan Gorenstein, is a nonprofit media podcast that tackles thorny issues in public health policy by distilling difficult topics into easy-to-understand and entertaining programming. Trade-offs do not only concern side effects or drug safety, but they can sometimes be problematic.
It's a great episode. ”Why people fear the most popular opioid addiction treatment” details how the rise in illicit drug use of fentanyl has thwarted various drug treatments to treat opioid use disorder. Buprenorphen is one of only three prescription drugs approved by the FDA to treat opioid use disorder. The other two are just less effective (naltrexone) and harder to obtain (methadone).
Buprephenone stimulates the same receptors in the brain as opioids. In fact, it's an opioid. But for people with opioid use disorder, it prevents withdrawal symptoms and reduces drug cravings without causing any euphoria or “high.” However, because it blocks the same receptors that other opioids bind to, taking it while other opioids are still in your system can lead to severe withdrawal symptoms known as “rapid withdrawal.”
Fentanyl, an opioid commonly found in illegal painkillers and heroin, stays in the body longer than other opioids, and its presence often causes withdrawal symptoms, which are buprephenone's worst side effects. In this episode, we learned a lot about drugs like buprenorphine, but we also learned a lot about how policy and research are being forced to adapt based on the realities of drug use and its side effects.
Drug safety podcasts worth listening to
There are two podcasts dedicated to drug safety and pharmacovigilance that stand out for their focus on this topic. The former is recommended for those interested enough to read this article, but the latter is only recommended for those who want to learn more about the weeds of pharmaceutical companies.
Drug safety issues
first, Drug safety issuesis produced. Uppsala monitoring centeris a non-profit organization that advances the science of drug safety around the world and is a designated World Health Organization Collaborating Center for the International Pharmacovigilance Programme. Drug Safety Matters examines current issues in pharmacovigilance and drug safety. Producer and presenter Federica Santero is communications officer at the Uppsala Monitoring Center. She will briefly explain various topics in pharmacovigilance and encourage guests to demystify their work.
The perfect introduction to the podcast is its latest episode.Catching the Black Swan – François Montasluc” They are called “black swans” according to the theories and writings of Nassim Nicholas Taleb because they deal with drug side effects that are so serious and difficult to predict.Black Swan, Impact of Likely Events” and the potential subsequent impact on drug safety.
Santero interviews François Montasluc, an expert in clinical pharmacology and pharmacovigilance.Oulouse University Hospital, France, he had long been interested in Taleb's theory. Mr. Santero encouraged Mr. Montasturk to use various examples to define for the audience what the black swan theory is and how it affects drug safety, and said, He cited drugs to treat the new coronavirus infection.
Montastruck is Adverse Reaction Researched (ADR) Report Cases of thrombosis and thrombocytopenia caused by AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccine are cited as black swan events in COVID-19 vaccine and treatment trials . For some patients, unexplained death was a very rare side effect, making it an unusual and unpredictable event and influencing vaccination strategies.
France has stopped administering the AstraZeneca vaccine to young people due to side effects. Montastruc explains that pharmacovigilance during emergencies like the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic requires a completely different review of clinical trials. For example, time is shorter. This makes ADR reporting and international communication even more important. In contrast, more common and predictable side effects, such as white swan events, or the well-documented cardiac and psychiatric effects of hydroxychloroquine, are more quickly identified in global databases such as characterized. business basewhich was also explained on the podcast.
After all, ADR is a reality of pharmacovigilance, and Montastruc shares the importance of efficiently sharing this information around the world to improve drug safety. During his interview, Monastrak explains how Taleb's black swan theory influences drug safety research and the policies that result from it. Even though I realize we don't have the same budget as some major news organizations for small tasks like audio editing, I really enjoyed listening to this podcast and learned a lot.
See also
Innovation and the future of pharmacovigilance
Another podcast about drug safety is: Innovation and the future of pharmacovigilance, hosted by Indi Ahluwalia. Full disclosure, this event is hosted by his Truliant Talks, and guests often include major pharmaceutical company executives. After a bit of research, this was the only podcast where it was unclear whether the guests had conflicts of interest (i.e. ties to pharmaceutical companies). Therefore, although its content and guests may be interesting, it is primarily focused on pharmacovigilance from a corporate and pharmaceutical industry perspective.
Because of this, in many ways I found this podcast to be less interesting and, to be honest, bordering on boring. However, it's also a behind-the-scenes look at pharmacovigilance, so if you're looking for a deeper, business-centric look at drug safety, this is definitely the podcast for you.
The latest episode “bill ringbloom”, host Ahluwalia interviewed Ringbloom about his work as AstraZeneca's Head of Global Patient Safety Technology Solutions. Ringbloom analyzes drug safety and pharmacovigilance and how these themes are integrated into AstraZeneca's corporate strategy and systems.
This podcast episode is a pharmaceutical company's perspective on pharmacovigilance, rather than a primary perspective on pharmacovigilance. In other words, it's not my preferred direction. He acknowledges that drug safety is a necessity, but at the same time is always looking for economic value and opportunity. These two things go hand in hand for him.
Still, I thought it was interesting to learn how sausages are made. One example he brought up early on was his vision of a “data supermarket.” Even though doctors, scientists, and other researchers can access a drug company's systems online and select information such as clinical trials and support programs, that only works if the product is on the shelf. Other than Drug safety. I don't know what that is. I don't know if I want to know. And, to be honest, it's difficult to parse from the interviews what the data supermarket contains and whether it is related to drug safety or adverse events.
However, Ringbloom later responded that data, in a very broad sense, is the future of what's next for pharmacovigilance. more Data, AI data, clinical trial data, data we don't have access to yet (I don't know what that is, but I wanted to know!). This includes not only clinical trial data, but also supplemental clinical trial data, detailed case data, claims data, electronic health data, and more. Ringbloom's data supermarket concept may have more to do with pharmacovigilance than profit, but ultimately interviews are too vague to say either way.
Other episodes are similar to this, very industry focused. I'm not sure if I'm the ideal audience for “Innovations and the Future of Pharmacovigilance,” but I'm sure that PhD students and MBA graduates looking to break into the industry would like to hear more from the industry. You will be able to get But eventually, in a very black swan-like turn of events, I realized that this podcast would become an important listening point for people who wanted to know more. all Describes drug safety and how pharmacovigilance is conducted.
Listen, listen!The drug safety podcast has arrived
This roundup is by no means complete, but it's a small sampling of what we found, and that's a good thing. Podcasts have exploded as a source of news consumption, with increased interest in drug safety and pharmacovigilance post-pandemic. The wealth of interesting podcasts dedicated to drug safety and side effects continues to grow. If you're already listening to the podcast, you're in luck. Because the world of podcasts is moving toward exploring all the ways and personal stories about why drug safety is important.