The Relative Safety of Ephedra Compared with Other Herbal Products
Authors: Stephen Bent
Journal: Annals of Internal Medicine (2003)

Letters2 September 2003The Relative Safety of Ephedra Compared with Other Herbal ProductsStephen Bent, MD, Thomas N. Tiedt, PhD, and Michael G. Shlipak, MD, MPHStephen Bent, MDFrom University of California, San Francisco; San Francisco, CA 94121; Med-Tox Group; Longboat Key, FL 34228; and San Francisco Veterans Affairs Medical Center; San Francisco, CA 94121.Search for more papers by this author, Thomas N. Tiedt, PhDFrom University of California, San Francisco; San Francisco, CA 94121; Med-Tox Group; Longboat Key, FL 34228; and San Francisco Veterans Affairs Medical Center; San Francisco, CA 94121.Search for more papers by this author, and Michael G. Shlipak, MD, MPHFrom University of California, San Francisco; San Francisco, CA 94121; Med-Tox Group; Longboat Key, FL 34228; and San Francisco Veterans Affairs Medical Center; San Francisco, CA 94121.Search for more papers by this authorAuthor, Article, and Disclosure Informationhttps://doi.org/10.7326/0003-4819-139-5_Part_1-200309020-00020 SectionsAboutFull TextPDF ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissions ShareFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail IN RESPONSE:We disagree with the comments of Drs. Kingston and Borron, Dr. Whitaker, and Dr. Dickinson. The data from the national system of Poison Control Centers provide a critical safety valve for consumers. Health researchers, government agencies, and product manufacturers rely on these data to warn the public about product dangers and to design safer products.Drs. Kingston and Borron note that, on average, 15.4% of adverse event reports that the Poison Control Centers receive are later judged to be unrelated to the herb under examination. If 15.4% of adverse event reports are removed from each of the herbs ...References1. Research methodology. Nutrition Business Journal. Accessed at www.nutritionbusiness.com/research/methodology.cfm on 9 June 2003. Google Scholar2. Kalman DS, Antonio J, Kreider RB. The relative safety of ephedra compared with other herbal products [Letter]. Ann Intern Med. 2003; 138:1006; author reply 1006-7. [PMID: 12809464] Google Scholar3. Shekelle PG, Maglione M, Morton SC. Preponderance of evidence: judging what to do about ephedra. RAND review. 2003; 27:16-21. Accessed at www.rand.org/publications/randreview/issues/spring2003/rr.spring2003.pdf on 9 June 2003. Google Scholar Author, Article, and Disclosure InformationAffiliations: From University of California, San Francisco; San Francisco, CA 94121; Med-Tox Group; Longboat Key, FL 34228; and San Francisco Veterans Affairs Medical Center; San Francisco, CA 94121. PreviousarticleNextarticle Advertisement FiguresReferencesRelatedDetailsSee AlsoThe Relative Safety of Ephedra Compared with Other Herbal Products Stephen Bent , Thomas N. Tiedt , Michelle C. Odden , and Michael G. Shlipak The Relative Safety of Ephedra Compared with Other Herbal Products Douglas S. Kalman , Jose Antonio , and Richard B. Kreider The Relative Safety of Ephedra Compared with Other Herbal Products Richard L. Kingston and Stephen W. Borron The Relative Safety of Ephedra Compared with Other Herbal Products Julian M. Whitaker The Relative Safety of Ephedra Compared with Other Herbal Products Annette Dickinson The Relative Safety of Ephedra Compared with Other Herbal Products Julian M. Whitaker The Relative Safety of Ephedra Compared with Other Herbal Products Richard L. Kingston and Stephen W. Borron The Relative Safety of Ephedra Compared with Other Herbal Products Annette Dickinson Metrics 2 September 2003Volume 139, Issue 5_Part_1Page: 386-387KeywordsAdverse eventsCocaineDrugsEpileptic seizuresMyocardial infarctionNutritionRelative riskRisk managementSafetyStroke ePublished: 2 September 2003 Issue Published: 2 September 2003 CopyrightCopyright © 2003 by American College of Physicians. All Rights Reserved.PDF DownloadLoading ...