Valeant pulls Parkinson's drug on safety fears

Valeant Pharmaceuticals has pulled the Parkinson's drug pergolide, sold as Permax, after regulators determined that the drug was associated with high rates of heart valve damage. Permax is made by Valeant and two generic versions are also on the market. The therapy is a dopamine agonist and is used as a first-line treatment against Parkinson's. Valeant's move came at the request of the FDA, which has been tracking heart valve damage linked to the drug since 2002. Permax has been on the market for 19 years.

- check out the release on the withdraw from the FDA
- here's the report from HealthDay

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