Acomplia helps overweight people lose weight

When Acomplia launched in UK, it had around 100,000 people – and their doctors - waiting for it, as it was the first drug in the world to counter and treat the widely prevalent problem of obesity or overweight. It was never marketed as a wonder drug, it was always explained to physicians and patients that the medicine(rimonabant), was effective only in combination with diet and exercise.

But there is always a catch when it comes to such medicines. And sure enough, Sanofi Paris, and its new invention Acomplia found itself at the centre of a controversy soon. While there was no doubt that the medicine did indeed deliver on promised lines, the concern was about the safety of patients who were on anti-depressants.

So much so, that in UK a notice was sent out to all doctors communicating clearly that Acomplia was not to be given to patients with a history of major depression. What’s more, doctors who had recommended Acomplia to obese patients were requested to be on alert for new symptoms of depression.

The responsible pharma major that it is, Sanofi-Aventis conducted a survey, and this showed that there was a proportionately higher risk of psychiatric problems in obese or overweight patients taking rimonabant.

Experts also suggested that the drug was less effective in reality than suggested, but this was mainly because patients took it for a short period, and did not continue with the entire course of medicine along with the diet and exercise regimen suggested. It was therefore more of a behavioural truth than a clinical fallacy.

Sanofi-Aventis has all along maintained that Acomplia remained a crucial and progressive answer to a highly prevalent and increasing unmet medical need. Ask anyone who is staring at high BMI (Body Mass Index).