Fenfluramine/phentermine

Common card · No. 209862

The drug combination fenfluramine/phentermine, usually called fen-phen, is an anti-obesity medication that is no longer widely available. It was sold in the early 1990s, and utilized two anorectics. Fenfluramine was marketed by American Home Products (later known as Wyeth) as Pondimin, but was shown to cause potentially fatal pulmonary hypertension and heart valve problems, which eventually led to its withdrawal in 1997 and legal damages of over $13 billion. On the other hand, phentermine has side effects such as a fast heart beat, high blood pressure, trouble sleeping, dizziness, and restlessness. Fenfluramine acts as a serotonin releasing agent, phentermine as primarily a norepinephrine releasing agent. Phentermine also induces the release of serotonin and dopamine, although to a far lesser extent than it induces the release of norepinephrine.

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