Side Effect - Examples of Therapeutic Side-effects

Examples of Therapeutic Side-effects

• Bevacizumab (Avastin) has been used against wet age-related macular degeneration, as well as macular edema from diseases such as diabetic retinopathy and central retinal vein occlusion.
• Buprenorphine has been shown experimentally (1982–1995) to be effective against severe, refractory depression.
• Bupropion, an anti-depressant sold as Wellbutrin, is also used as a smoking cessation aid; this indication was later approved, and the name of the smoking cessation product is Zyban. In Ontario, Canada, smoking cessation drugs are not covered by provincial drug plans; elsewhere, Zyban is priced higher than Wellbutrin, despite being the same drug. Therefore, some physicians prescribe Wellbutrin for both indications.
• Sildenafil was originally intended for pulmonary hypertension; subsequently, it was discovered that it also produces erections, for which it was later marketed.
• Carbamazepine is an approved treatment for manic depression and convulsions, but has side effects useful in treating attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), schizophrenia, phantom limb syndrome, paroxysmal extreme pain disorder, neuromyotonia, and post-traumatic stress disorder.
• Dexamethasone and Betamethasone in premature labor, to enhance pulmonary maturation of the fetus.
• Doxepin has been used to treat Angiodema and severe allergic reactions due to its strong antihistamine properties.
• Gabapentin, approved for treatment of seizures and postherpetic neuralgia in adults, has side-effects which are useful in treating bipolar disorder, essential tremor, hot flashes, migraine prophylaxis, neuropathic pain syndromes, phantom limb syndrome, and restless leg syndrome.
• Magnesium sulfate in obstetrics for premature labor and preeclampsia.
• Methotrexate (MTX), approved for the treatment of choriocarcinoma, is frequently used for the medical treatment of an unruptured ectopic pregnancy.
• The SSRI medication sertraline is approved as an anti-depressant, but delays conjugal climax in men, and thus may be supplied to those in which climax is premature.
• Human chorionic gonadotropin is a hormone produced during pregnancy by the cells that form the placenta. It has been used as a diet hormone as well because of the supposed positive side effects it has on weight loss.