McCain's Ambien Use: a Security Threat?

McCain's Ambien Use: a Security Threat?

The unusual side effects of the drug once again made headlines a few
months later, when Rhode Island Rep. Patrick Kennedy smashed his Ford
Mustang into a barrier near Capitol Hill

Sleep Drug Known for Memory-Linked Side Effects; Most Doctors
Unconcerned
By DAN CHILDS
ABC News Medical Unit

RSS In a presidential race marked by references to preparedness in the
face of the 3 a.m. call, the revelation that presumptive Republican
nominee Sen. John McCain has taken the sleeping pill Ambien during his
travels raises concerns that the rare side effects of the medication
could impair his judgment.

While most sleep experts agree that McCain's occasional use of Ambien
will not pose a major concern, they say planning is key when it comes
to taking the sleep medication.

(AP Photo/Getty Images)"Taking more than the recommended dosage of
Ambien or combining it with other sedative-hypnotics — for example,
alcohol — may result in amnesia, fugue states and sleep walking," said
Dr. Peter A. Fotinakes, medical director of the St. Joseph Sleep
Disorders Center in Orange, Calif. "Used appropriately, Ambien is a
relatively safe medication."

Though rare, such side effects associated with Ambien have made
headlines.

Patients who claimed that they engaged in a bizarre variety of
activities while asleep after taking the drug — from binge eating to
driving their cars while asleep — lodged class action lawsuit in 2006
against Sanofi-Aventis, the maker of the drug.

The unusual side effects of the drug once again made headlines a few
months later, when Rhode Island Rep. Patrick Kennedy smashed his Ford
Mustang into a barrier near Capitol Hill. He later released a
statement saying that he had been disoriented by two prescription
medications he had taken, one of which was Ambien.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has uncovered more than a dozen
reports of sleep-driving, all linked to the drug. Partly in response
to such reports, the FDA urged sleep drug manufacturers on March 14,
2007 to strengthen their package labeling to include warnings of sleep
walking, "sleep driving" and other behaviors.

Still, some sleep experts maintained that the rarity of these side
effects, coupled with the wide use of the drug, make it unlikely that
a problem would arise if the commander-in-chief were taking the
pills.

"I suspect that drugs like Ambien are used very commonly by government
officials, particularly when crossing time zones," noted Dr. Donald W.
Greenblatt, director of the Strong Sleep Disorders Center at the
University of Rochester Medical Center.

http://abcnews.go.com/Health/Politics/Story?id=4919842&page=1

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