In the 1990s, Pfizer, Inc., developed a new antibiotic called Trovan (trovafloxa
ID: 1180374 • Letter: I
Question
In the 1990s, Pfizer, Inc., developed a new antibiotic called Trovan (trovafloxacin mesylate). Tests showed that in animals Trovan had life-threatening side effects, including joint disease, abnormal cartilage growth, liver damage and a degenerative bone condition. In 1996, an epidemic of bacterial meningitis swept across Nigeria. Pfizer sent three U.S. physicians to test Trovan on children who were patients in Nigeria's Infectious Disease Hospital. Pfizer did not obtain the patients' consent, alert them to the risks, or tell them that Medecins Sans Frontieres (Doctors without Borders) was providing an effective conventional treatment at the same site. Eleven children died in the experiment, and others were left blind, deaf, paralyzed or brain damaged. Rabi Abdullahi and other Nigerian children filed a suit in a U.S. federal district court against Pfizer, alleging a violation of a cursory international law norm prohibiting involuntary medical experimentation on humans. Did Pfizer violate any ethical standards? What might Pfizer have done to avert the consequences? Explain.
Explanation / Answer
Problem? The drug had life-threatening side-effects on the animals, which included, joint disease, abnormal cartilage growth, liver damage, and a degenerative bone condition. Also, they did not get consent to give the drug to the children, nor did they tell them the effects of the drug, and they did not tell the children that there was an effective drug being administered on the same site.
Result? Eleven children died and others were left blind, deaf, paralyzed, and brain damaged. They filed a suit against Pfizer.
Background Yes. Ethical reasoning is a reasoning process in which an individual links his or her moral convictions or ethical standards to the particular situation at hand.
Any moral person would not give a person a drug knowing what it can do, especially not without their consent. Did Pfizer violate any ethical standards? What might Pfizer have done to advert the consequences? Explain. Create a working drug before giving it to people. This would have saved the company from the lawsuit that was brought against them.
Get consent to test the drug on the children and let them know of the side-effects. Then, the company would not be liable for anything that happened to the children from taking the drug because the children consented to taking the drug knowing the risk involved.