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Previous Volume 352:1173-1176 March 24, 2005 Number 12 Next

	Since this article has no abstract, we have provided an extract of the first 100 words of the full text and any section headings.

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In most cases, when a new drug is approved, almost everything known about its safety in humans is based on the responses of a few thousand people who took it during clinical trials. But once the drug is on the market, the real safety testing gets under way. Within a year or two, the number of people who are exposed to the medication may climb into the millions, especially if the manufacturer promotes it aggressively with television or print advertisements that target consumers. If the drug has a dangerous but rare side effect — for example, liver failure or aplastic . . . [Full Text of this Article]

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