Medication discontinuation  

From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia

Related e

Wikipedia Wiktionary Shop Featured: Rhombicuboctahedron by Leonardo da Vinci

Discontinuation is the process of quitting a procedure, such as, the course of treatment with a drug or a consumer product line.

Drugs

• Discontinuation of a treatment is to stop taking a drug. There are several reasons for discontinuation, e.g.:
  • The ailment or reason it was taken has disappeared.
  • The adverse effects outweigh the desired effects.
  • Other, better, alternatives are available.

Drug discontinuation may cause rebound effects (return of the symptoms the drug relieved, and that, to a degree stronger than they were before treatment first began) and withdrawal syndromes (symptoms caused by the discontinuation by the drug itself).

Consumer products

• Discontinuation for consumer products is when a product's manufacture and/or support are stopped by the company that makes the product. This is usually due to low sales, but it does not mean the product never sold well. Many high selling products eventually see a drop in sales and eventual discontinuation, usually after being superseded by a superior product.

See also

• Out of print
• SSRI discontinuation syndrome