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Listening to Lyrica: contested illnesses and pharmaceutical determinism

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  • Barker, Kristin K.

Abstract

Fibromyalgia syndrome is a debilitating pain disorder of unknown origins and a paradigmatic contested illness. As with other contested illnesses, the reality of fibromyalgia is disputed by many physicians. Thus, millions of individuals who are diagnosed with fibromyalgia must cope with chronic symptoms as well as medical and public skepticism. In this context, the U.S. Federal Drug Administration's approval of Lyrica, the first prescription medication specifically for the management of fibromyalgia, is of considerable interest. In this paper I examine the cultural logic whereby the existence (and marketing) of an officially approved prescription medication for a condition lends support to the biomedical existence of the condition itself. I label this logic pharmaceutical determinism and argue that it represents an important new phase in the proliferation of contested illness diagnoses. Using the case of Lyrica, I describe the role that pharmaceutical companies and pharmaceuticals themselves play in promoting and legitimating contested diagnoses and validating those who are so diagnosed. Through a narrative analysis of the Lyrica direct-to-consumer advertising campaign and the responses of fibromyalgia sufferers to the introduction and marketing of Lyrica, I demonstrate the symbiotic relationship between the interests of the pharmaceutical industry, contested illness legitimization, and medicalization. I also provide a gender analysis of this relationship, foregrounding how contested illnesses continue to be shaped by their feminization in a cultural context that equates women with irrationality. Finally, I address the consequences and limitations of relying on the pharmaceutical industry for illness validation.

Suggested Citation

  • Barker, Kristin K., 2011. "Listening to Lyrica: contested illnesses and pharmaceutical determinism," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 73(6), pages 833-842, September.
  • Handle: RePEc:eee:socmed:v:73:y:2011:i:6:p:833-842
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Leonore Tiefer, 2006. "Female Sexual Dysfunction: A Case Study of Disease Mongering and Activist Resistance," PLOS Medicine, Public Library of Science, vol. 3(4), pages 1-1, April.
    2. Nettleton, Sarah, 2006. "'I just want permission to be ill': Towards a sociology of medically unexplained symptoms," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 62(5), pages 1167-1178, March.
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    Cited by:

    1. Brian Walitt & Richard L Nahin & Robert S Katz & Martin J Bergman & Frederick Wolfe, 2015. "The Prevalence and Characteristics of Fibromyalgia in the 2012 National Health Interview Survey," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 10(9), pages 1-16, September.
    2. Jovanovic, Maja, 2014. "Creating the ‘dis-ease’ of high cholesterol: A sociology of diagnosis reception analysis," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 101(C), pages 120-128.
    3. Vololona Rabeharisoa, 2013. "Evidence-based activism: Patients’ organisations, users’ and activist’s groups in knowledge society," CSI Working Papers Series 033, Centre de Sociologie de l'Innovation (CSI), Mines ParisTech.
    4. Claire Edwards & Etaoine Howlett & Madeleine Akrich & Vololona Rabeharisoa, 2012. "Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder in France and Ireland: parents' groups' scientific and political framing of an unsettled condition," CSI Working Papers Series 024, Centre de Sociologie de l'Innovation (CSI), Mines ParisTech.
    5. Groenevelt, I.P.(Irene) & de Boer, M.L.(Marjolein), 2023. "Contesting misrecognition online: Experiences of epistemic in/justice by vloggers with contested illnesses," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 327(C).
    6. Fisher, Jill A. & Cottingham, Marci D. & Kalbaugh, Corey A., 2015. "Peering into the pharmaceutical “pipeline”: Investigational drugs, clinical trials, and industry priorities," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 131(C), pages 322-330.
    7. Easter, Michele M., 2012. "“Not all my fault”: Genetics, stigma, and personal responsibility for women with eating disorders," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 75(8), pages 1408-1416.

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