http://www.johnshopkinshealthalerts.com/alerts/prescription_drugs/index.html en-us © 2007 Medletter Associates, LLC. All rights reserved. customerservice@johnshopkinshealthalerts.com webmaster@iproduction.com Tue, 29 Apr 2008 00:07:58 CDT Tue, 29 Apr 2008 00:07:58 CDT IPS - www.iproduction.com When your doctor prescribes a new medication, are the dosing and potential side effects thoroughly discussed? For many patients they are not, as a recent study discovered.There is no single ideal dose of any medication for all patients, because people often respond differently to the same medications. The dose must be tailored to you and your specific medical needs. The goal is to identify the minimum effective dose: one that provides sufficient benefit, with minimum… http://www.johnshopkinshealthalerts.com/alerts/prescription_drugs/JohnsHopkinsPrescriptionDrugsHealthAlert_1966-1.html?CMP=OTC-RSS Recent research indicates that acetaminophen overuse is on the rise and can lead to acute liver failure. What should you do? Johns Hopkins offers advice.The fact that the average lifespan in the United States continues to inch upward suggests that most people who use medications are better off for the experience. However, it's also obvious from the daily news that even though drugs are tested thoroughly they can have unexpected side effects. … http://www.johnshopkinshealthalerts.com/alerts/prescription_drugs/JohnsHopkinsPrescriptionDrugsHealthAlert_1896-1.html?CMP=OTC-RSS People are discouraged from consuming grapefruits or grapefruit juice while taking certain medications because they can affect the way the medications are metabolized. Now scientists are closer to understanding why this dangerous interaction occurs.Certain foods and drinks don't mix well with certain medications. For example, grapefruits or grapefruit juice may interact badly with a number of medications, because natural grapefruit contains a substance that affects the activity of an enzyme in the intestines and liver… http://www.johnshopkinshealthalerts.com/alerts/prescription_drugs/JohnsHopkinsPrescriptionDrugsHealthAlert_1820-1.html?CMP=OTC-RSS Have you ever been given a placebo? In a recent study, the AMA Ethics Board concludes that secret placebo treatment is improper.The American Medical Association (AMA) Council on Ethical and Judicial Affairs (CEJA) has decided that it is unethical for doctors to offer placebo therapy without patient consent. To be incorporated into the AMA's Code of Medical Ethics, the AMA House of Delegates, the organization's national policy-making body, must vote in favor of the ruling.… http://www.johnshopkinshealthalerts.com/alerts/prescription_drugs/JohnsHopkinsPrescriptionDrugsHealthAlert_1816-1.html?CMP=OTC-RSS Generic drugs can save the consumer a lot of money. But some pharmaceutical manufacturers work aggressively to keep their market for a drug that goes off patent, limiting the availability of the generic brand. Here's an example.The term 'generic drug' usually refers to a drug that has come off patent and is manufactured by one or more generic-drug companies in addition to the company that originally held the patent. Most generic drugs reach the market… http://www.johnshopkinshealthalerts.com/alerts/prescription_drugs/JohnsHopkinsPrescriptionDrugsHealthAlert_1794-1.html?CMP=OTC-RSS Someday, shingles may be obsolete, but for now there's a vaccine – if you're lucky enough to get it from your doctor. The shingles vaccine was approved in 2006, but you may have found that it's not offered at your doctor's office. This isn't unusual. Many doctors' offices and insurance providers handle the shingles vaccine, called Zostavax, like a prescription drug. For instance, Medicare covers Zostavax under Part D, its prescription drug plan, whereas other adult… http://www.johnshopkinshealthalerts.com/alerts/prescription_drugs/JohnsHopkinsPrescriptionDrugsHealthAlert_1556-1.html?CMP=OTC-RSS Do drug ads help patients or harm them? Critics of drug ads assert that the ads foster artificial demand for brand-name drugs, drive up the cost of health care, potentially expose people to side effects from unproven drugs, and complicate the doctor-patient relationship.If you are an American adult who has read a magazine or watched television in the past decade, chances are you have seen many direct-to-consumer (DTC) drug advertisements. Commonly these ads identify… http://www.johnshopkinshealthalerts.com/alerts/prescription_drugs/JohnsHopkinsPrescriptionDrugsHealthAlert_1520-1.html?CMP=OTC-RSS The average medical news report on local TV stations lasts for only 33 seconds, which means that reporters have very little time to explain the details of a study, let alone discuss which of their listeners it might actually affect. http://www.johnshopkinshealthalerts.com/alerts/prescription_drugs/JohnsHopkinsPrescriptionDrugsHealthAlert_1519-1.html?CMP=OTC-RSS Health insurance companies love generic drugs, because they cost less money than branded versions – but are generic drugs right for you? Are generic drugs safe? The short answer is yes, because in the United States, manufacturers must prove to the FDA that the generic version of a drug has the same active ingredient as the original, branded version and that it is absorbed into the body approximately as well (with no more than a 20%… http://www.johnshopkinshealthalerts.com/alerts/prescription_drugs/JohnsHopkinsPrescriptionsDrugsHealthAlert_1411-1.html?CMP=OTC-RSS When do you really need an antibiotic for a respiratory illness? Probably not very often. However, some doctors still prescribe antibiotics inappropriately despite the risks, in large part because patients expect them. The common cold, sore throats, sinus infections, coughs, and bronchitis -- these acute respiratory infections (ARIs) send more people to the doctor than any other kind of illness. About 75% of the time, people go home with a prescription for an antibiotic— -- whether… http://www.johnshopkinshealthalerts.com/alerts/prescription_drugs/JohnsHopkinsPrescriptionsDrugsHealthAlert_1409-1.html?CMP=OTC-RSS Do you know your pharmacist’s name? If you don’t, that’s one of several questions you might want to ask. A survey commissioned by the American Pharmacists Association (APhA) found that people who know their pharmacists by name also tend to keep their pharmacists up to date on all the medications they take, read the labeling information on their prescriptions, know the active ingredients of their medications, and more often ask their pharmacists questions about their medications. http://www.johnshopkinshealthalerts.com/alerts/prescription_drugs/JohnsHopkinsPrescriptionsDrugsHealthAlert_1408-1.html?CMP=OTC-RSS Drug Safety Report #1: Bayer Failed To Disclose Dangers of Anti-Bleeding Drug On February 8, 2006, the FDA issued a public health advisory about Trasylol (aprotinin), a drug used to reduce bleeding during heart surgery. Only days earlier, a finding had been reported in The New England Journal of Medicine that Trasylol significantly increased the risk of heart attack, heart failure, stroke, and kidney failure, whereas two older and much less expensive generic anti-bleeding drugs… http://www.johnshopkinshealthalerts.com/alerts/prescription_drugs/JohnsHopkinsPrescriptionDrugsHealthAlert_1368-1.html?CMP=OTC-RSS Survival comes dear for cancer patients who need some new anticancer drugs. In some cases, paying for cancer treatment can be an issue in itself. This is especially true when cancer treatment continues for an extended time and involves chemotherapy. Among cancer survivors younger than 65, one in five delay getting necessary cancer treatment or avoid it entirely just because of the cost, according to a 2006 study by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and… http://www.johnshopkinshealthalerts.com/alerts/prescription_drugs/JohnsHopkinsPrescriptionsDrugsHealthAlert_1053-1.html?CMP=OTC-RSS On Warfarin and Herbal Supplements -- If you use warfarin, you already know the rules for dealing with food and drug interactions: Don’t start or stop taking any other medications without telling your doctor, keep the amount of vitamin-K-rich foods that you eat consistent, and carry a medical ID card or bracelet to inform emergency personnel that you’re taking warfarin. … http://www.johnshopkinshealthalerts.com/alerts/prescription_drugs/JohnsHopkinsPrescriptionDrugsHealthAlert_816-1.html?CMP=OTC-RSS Should you switch to a generic version of Zocor or another prescription medication? Read this … then decide. Typically, a generic drug is much less expensive than its brand-name counterpart, and opting for it can make economic sense for both you… http://www.johnshopkinshealthalerts.com/alerts/prescription_drugs/JohnsHopkinsPrescriptionDrugsHealthAlert_680-1.html?CMP=OTC-RSS