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Editorial  New drugs: the right to know TOP TEXTS OF 2020 SPECIAL EDITION How we work Prescrire ’s complex, collective editing process has been fine-tuned over the years NEW PRODUCTS

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Pembrolizumab ( keytruda ° ) with cytotoxic drugs in metastatic lung cancer  A useful first-line combination when PD-L1 expres- sion is low Opicapone ( ongentys ° ) and Parkinson’s disease with motor fluctuations  A single daily dose, but more dyskinesia Dengue vaccine ( dengvaxia ° ) Not for large-scale use Denosumab ( prolia ° ) and steroid-induced osteoporosis EMA turns a blind eye to denosumab’s lack of proven clinical efficacy

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Prescrire ’s reviews, written by specially trained health professionals, are based on an exhaustive search of the literature, and undergo scrutiny by a large panel of outside reviewers plus rigorous quality-control procedures.

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Editors free from conflicts of interest The absence of any direct or indirect financial links to the pharmaceutical industry is an absolute requirement to be a member of the Prescrire team. Any such link would be cause for dismissal from the Prescrire Editorial Staff. A vast network of reviewers Once they are in an advanced stage of editing and quality control, all draft reviews are sent to outside reviewers (10 to 40 reviewers read each draft at this stage). These reviewers critique each article in terms of content, style, relevance, newsworthiness, presenta- tion of arguments and usefulness in daily practice. The reviewers are spe- cialists in the subject being discussed, methodologists, or healthcare profes- sionals representative of Prescrire ’s readers (and chosen from their midst).

All the reviews published in la Revue Prescrire (aside from a few clearly labelled exceptions, such as readers’ letters) are written by Prescrire ’s Edi- torial Staff. Prescrire does not publish unsolicited manuscripts from outside contributors. The production of reviews draws upon a wide range of skills, all exer- cised under the supervision of Prescrire ’s editors. This team approach is reflected in the collective byline “©Prescrire”. Written and edited by healthcare professionals Most of Prescrire ’s editors are physicians (both in individual prac- tice or on hospital staff), pharma- cists (working in pharmacies or hos- pitals), nurses and dentists. A few are economists or journalists with specific expertise in the area of health- care. All Prescrire editors have received extensive in-house training in Prescrire’ s editorial production process.

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ADVERSE EFFECTS

High thrombotic risk and antiphospholipid antibodies Avoid direct oral anticoagulants Antiepileptics and pregnancy Potential long-term effects in children

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Oral peanut desensitisation Excessive adverse effects

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SSRI antidepressants  Persistent sexual dysfunction

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REVIEWS

Dulaglutide and type 2 diabetes No reduction in all-cause mortality or cardiovascular mortality Antispasmodics during pregnancy In brief

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OUTLOOK

Gifts to doctors wield undue influence in France

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Drugs in 2019: a brief review

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Towards better patient care: drugs to avoid in 2020

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P rescrire I nternational S pecial E dition 2020 • P age 1