Direct-to-consumer advertisements for HIV antiretroviral medications: a progress report.
Direct-to-consumer (DTC) prescription drug advertisements for HIV anti-retrovirals are controversial and have been criticized in the past for including deceptive images and underplaying HIV drug limitations. We sought to describe the state of recent DTC ads for HIV antiretrovirals in popular magazines by performing a content analysis of all complete DTC ads for antiretroviral medications appearing in eight national magazines during a one-year period. Current ads appear to have addressed previous concerns, but important problems still exist, such as failing to specify the medication's role in current treatment, to quantify drug efficacy, or to highlight life-threatening side effects.
Kallen
Alexander
A
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia, USA. alexkallen@yahoo.com
Woloshin
Steven
S
Shu
Jennifer
J
Juhl
Ellen
E
Schwartz
Lisa
L
D000329:Advertising / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D019380:Anti-HIV Agents / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000592:standards / Q000627:therapeutic use; D015706:Bibliometrics; D004345:Drug Industry / Q000592:standards / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D008402:Mass Media / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D010506:Periodicals as Topic / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*
D019380:Anti-HIV Agents