Compulsive Gamblers Blame Dopamine Drug For Their Addictions
MINNEAPOLIS (CN) – Seven plaintiffs have sued four major pharmaceutical companies in Federal Court, claiming the drug Mirapex, prescribed for restless legs syndrome, gave them a pathological addiction to gambling. The patients claim in separate lawsuits that Mirapex, a dopamine agonist, works on dopamine receptors in the mesolimbic pathway, the brain area associated with pleasure, reward-seeking behavior and reinforcement. The FDA approved Mirapex for Parkinson’s disease in 1997 and defendants immediately began pushing it for restless legs syndrome, without warning doctors it could cause compulsive behaviors such as gambling addiction, the complaint states. The defendants changed the product literature in March 2005, stating on pages 17 and 21 of the “adverse reactions” section that Mirapex could cause “compulsive behaviors including sexual and pathological gambling,” but did not put this warning on the label, the suit states. Defendants are Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals, Pfizer, Pharmacia Corp., and Pharmacia & Upjohn. See story. |
