Article Figures & Data
Tables
Brand name Generic Product Name Manufacturer Advertised Indication * Product claim advertisement only. † Product claim and reminder advertisement. ‡ Advertisement promoted unnamed products that were identified on corresponding Web site. Actonel* Risedronate Procter & Gamble, Cincinnati, Ohio Osteoporosis Allegra* Fexofenodine Aventis, Bridgewater, NJ Allergy Ambien† Zolpidem Sanofi-Synthelabo, New York, NY Insomnia Celebrex† Celecoxib Pfizer, New York, NY Osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis Cialis† Tadalafil Lilly ICOS, Indianapolis, Ind Erectile dysfunction Crestor* Rosuvastatin AstraZeneca, Wilmington, Del Hypercholesterolemia Detrol LA* Tolterodine Pfizer, New York, NY Overactive bladder Enbrel* Etanercept Immunex, Thousand Oaks, Calif Rheumatoid arthritis Fosamax* Alendronate Merck, Whitehouse Station, NJ Osteoporosis Lamisil* Terbinafine Novartis, East Hanover, NJ Onychomycosis Levitra* Vardenafil Bayer, West Haven, Conn Erectile dysfunction Lipitor† Atorvastatin Pfizer, New York, NY Hypercholesterolemia Nexium* Esomeprazole AstraZeneca, Wilmington, Del Gastroesophageal reflux disease Diovan*‡ Valsartan Novartis, East Hanover, NJ Hypertension Diovan HCT Valsartan & HCT Novartis, East Hanover, NJ Hypertension Lotrel Amlodipine & Benazepril Novartis, East Hanover, NJ Hypertension Plavix* Clopidogrel Bristol-Myers Squibb, Princeton, NJ Acute coronary syndrome Prevacid† Lansoprazole TAP, Lake Forest, Ill Gastroesophageal reflux disease Procrit† Epoetin Alfa Amgen, Thousand Oaks, Calif Chemotherapy-related anemia Singulair* Montelukast Merck, Whitehouse Station, NJ Allergy Valtrex† Valacyclovir GlaxoSmithKline, Middlesex, UK Genital herpes Zelnorm* Tegaserod Novartis, East Hanover, NJ Irritable bowel syndrome with constipation Zocor* Simvastatin Merck, Whitehouse Station, NJ Hypercholesterolemia Zoloft* Sertraline Pfizer, New York, NY Depression, social anxiety disorder - Table 2.
Proportion of Advertisements That Present Factual Claims, Appeals, Lifestyle, and Medication Themes
Weighted Percentages Categories of Content All Ads Product Claim Ads Reminder Ads Note: Total unweighted N = 38, product claim ads n = 31, reminder ads n = 7. * The Food and Drug Administration does not permit the presentation of factual information in reminder ads. Factual claims* Any factual information (eg, symptoms) – 82.0 – Biological nature or mechanism of disease – 53.9 – Risk factors or cause of condition – 25.8 – Prevalence of condition – 24.7 – Subpopulation at risk of the condition 7.9 Appeals Rational 86.4 100.0 0.0 Positive emotional 95.1 94.4 100.0 Negative emotional 68.9 75.3 28.6 Humor 32.0 36.0 7.1 Fantasy 20.4 22.5 7.1 Sex 5.8 4.5 14.3 Nostalgia 3.9 3.4 7.1 Lifestyle portrayals Condition interferes with healthy or recreational activities 26.2 30.3 0.0 Product enables healthy or recreational activities 56.3 56.2 57.1 Lifestyle change is alternative to product use 0.0 0.0 0.0 Lifestyle change is insufficient 18.4 21.3 0.0 Lifestyle change is adjunct to product 19.4 22.5 0.0 Medication portrayals Loss of control caused by condition 58.3 67.4 0.0 Regaining control as result of product use 85.4 88.8 64.3 Social approval as a result of product use 77.7 83.1 42.9 Distress caused by condition 47.6 53.9 7.1 Breakthrough 58.3 67.4 0.0 Endurance increased as a result of product use 17.5 12.4 50.0 Protection as a result of product use 9.7 11.2 0.0 - Table 3.
Typical Examples of How Loss of Control, Regaining Control, and Social Approval Were Depicted in Selected Advertisements (Ads)
Product Central Character(s) Domain of Control Loss of Control Regaining Control Social Approval Zolpidem Photographer, female, middle-aged, white Amount of sleep each night; ability to engage in and enjoy work and leisure activities during the day Ad states, “A funny thing happens when your body doesn’t sleep at night. Your mind zones out during the day. It’s likegoing through life on autopilot. Out of synch with the world around you.” Ad shows a new character going to bed and waking up refreshed next morning, as narration continues, “To help you sleep there’s Ambien, the number 1 prescribed sleep aid in America. Ambien helps you fall asleep fast and stay asleep longer. So you wake up refreshed, not groggy.” Ad shows the photographer at work in the studio, smiling at her coworker, followed by a stern focus on her professional task Coworkers are interested in the photographer’s activities Basketball referee, male, middle-aged, white Guests are enjoying them-selves at the hands of their host, and offer a toast with beverages Vacationing male, middle-aged, white The ad shows each character engaging in professional and recreational activities, whereupon a ghostlike figure steps out of their body and makes sleeplike gestures The children are laughing with their father and photographing their enjoyable vacation activities Ad shows the basketball referee entertaining guests in a backyard barbecue, simultaneously serving food and socializing Ad shows the vacationing man with his children in a boat, visiting waterfalls, being cheerful Esomeprazole Wife/mother, middle- aged, white (Ad 1) Health of esophagus, enjoyment of specific foods, and participation in family dinner Both ads show characters at the dinner table with a large family, as food is served. Other family members are engaged in animated conversation. Orange juice transforms into bubbling and steaming green acid as the husband pours it into the woman’s glass. She briefly raises the glass, and her eyes grow wide with distress (Ad 1) The narrator states, “Next time, Nexium, the healing purple pill. For many, one prescription Nexium not only gets rid of heartburn, more importantly, it also heals acid reflux erosions. And healing is such a great feeling.” As the wife/mother takes the orange juice, she begins talking with her family for the first time in the ad (Ad 1) Husband/father, middle-aged, African American (Ad 2) As the husband/father takes the serving dish, he smiles at his wife and begins participating in the family meal (Ad 2) The mother raises her glass for more orange juice and says, “I’ll take that.” (Ad 1) Gravy transforms into thumbtacks as the wife pours it onto a slice of meat on the man’s plate. His face turns from smile to frown (Ad 2) The father happily receives a serving dish from his wife and says, “I’ll take that.” (Ad 2) Valacyclovir Young adult, female, white Ability to enjoy romantic encounters, and vacation The character sits in a hammock and states, “Living with genital herpes can be a hassle.” The next scene shows her sitting on the beach with a male romantic partner, as her voice narrates, “Each outbreak felt like it took days out of my life.” The days of the week scroll across the bottom of the screen and disappear The camera returns to her sitting in the hammock saying, “So I talked to my doctor and found out about Valtrex. Just 1 pill a day helps reduce the number of outbreaks. In fact, I’ve been outbreak-free for almost a year.” She concludes, “My days are mine, and that’s the way it should be.” The male romantic partner smiles and laughs with the primary character. They dance, sail, bike, and finally kiss and hug in the surf with Rio de Janeiro in the background Sertraline Red egglike cartoon character Ability to feel comfortable in social settings The main character enters a party and appears unhappy, uncomfortable, and isolated. Other characters, depicted in white, are dancing and talking. Narration states “You know that feeling of suddenly being very nervous? Maybe you’re scared of being criticized, or imagine that others are judging you. You’re embarrassed and don’t know why. Your heart thumps and races. So you stay back. You worry that you’re the only one whoever feels this way.” Narration states, “Zoloft prescription medicine can help. It works to correct a chemical imbalance in the brain which may be related to symptoms of social anxiety disorder.” Animation shows neurotransmitter levels increasing across a synapse. The red character gradually fades to white and begins to smile, giggle, and jump up and down with the other characters as narration continues, “In time you could overcome those nervous anxious moments…. Zoloft, when you know more about what’s wrong, you can help make it right.” After taking Zoloft, the primary character interacts with the other characters, smiles, giggles, and bounces up and down. The other characters smile approvingly and bounce as well
Additional Files
Supplemental Figure
Supplemental Figure. Storyboard for rosuvastatin.
Files in this Data Supplement:
- Adobe PDF - Frosch_Suppl_Fig.pdf - PDF file, 2 pages, 205 KB
The Article in Brief
Dominick L. Frosch , and colleagues
Background Average American television viewers see as many as 16 hours of prescription drug advertisements per year. Arguments in favor of advertising prescription drugs on television state that they help educate people about health conditions and available treatments. This study analyzes the messages in television prescription drug ads to understand how they influence consumers and whether they meet their educational potential.
What This Study Found Television prescription drugs ads usually try to persuade viewers using reasons other than medical costs and benefits. Ads provide some factual claims and rational arguments, but they don�t usually describe the causes or risk factors for a condition, or whether the condition is common. Almost all ads use emotional appeals and show characters who have lost control over their social, emotional, or physical lives without the medication. Ads portray prescription drugs as medical breakthroughs and minimize the value of healthy lifestyle changes.
Implications
- Despite claims that ads serve an educational purpose, they provide limited information about the causes of a disease or who may be at risk.
- Because prescription drug ads are unclear about who might need or benefit from the products, they imply that people may be at risk for a wide range of health conditions that can be treated by prescription drugs.
- The ads have limited educational value and may oversell the benefits of drugs in ways that may conflict with promoting health.
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