Advertisements impact the physiological efficacy of a branded drug

Emir Kamenica, Robert Naclerio, and Anup Malani
PNAS first published July 22, 2013 https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1012818110

  1. Edited by Jose A. Scheinkman, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, and approved June 6, 2013 (received for review August 31, 2010)

Abstract

We conducted randomized clinical trials to examine the impact of direct-to-consumer advertisements on the efficacy of a branded drug. We compared the objectively measured, physiological effect of Claritin (Merck & Co.), a leading antihistamine medication, across subjects randomized to watch a movie spliced with advertisements for Claritin or advertisements for Zyrtec (McNeil), a competitor antihistamine. Among subjects who test negative for common allergies, exposure to Claritin advertisements rather than Zyrtec advertisements increases the efficacy of Claritin. We conclude that branded drugs can interact with exposure to television advertisements.

Footnotes

  • ↵1E.K. and A.M. contributed equally to this work.

  • ↵2To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: emir{at}uchicago.edu.

  • Author contributions: E.K. and A.M. designed research; E.K., R.N., and A.M. performed research; E.K. and A.M. analyzed data; and E.K. and A.M. wrote the paper.

  • Conflict of interest statement: R.N. has received grants from McNeil, Teva Pharmaceutical Industries, Nasaleze, and Kalypsis; is or has been a speaker for Teva Pharmaceutical Industries and Sunovion; and is or has been a consultant for Teva Pharmaceutical Industries, Kalypsys, Sanofi, Meda, Sunovion, and Merck.

  • This article is a PNAS Direct Submission.

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Advertisements impact drug efficacy
Emir Kamenica, Robert Naclerio, Anup Malani
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences Jul 2013, 201012818; DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1012818110
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