News

At a fixed dose of 12 mg, methylnaltrexone bromide (Relistor, Progenics Pharmaceuticals) subcutaneous injection proved generally safe and well tolerated in non-malignant pain patients with opioid-induced constipation, according to a recent study.

First-trimester exposure to antiepileptic drugs compared with no exposure does not appear to increase the risk of major birth defects, according to a Danish study, published in the May 18 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association.

Medication use among pregnant women is widespread and increasing, according to a recent study from the Boston University School of Public Health in Boston.

FDA has approved sunitinib malate (Sutent, Pfizer) as the first anti-vascular endothelial growth factor therapy to treat progressive, well-differentiated pancreatic neuroendocrine tumors in patients with unresectable locally advanced or metastatic disease.

Vardenafil HCI (Staxyn, GlaxoSmithKline, Merck, and Bayer), an orally disintegrating tablet indicated for the treatment of erectile dysfunction in men, is now available in U.S. pharmacies.

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - For patients with type 2 diabetes not controlled with metformin and a sulfonylurea, the choice of an additional agent should be based on individual clinical characteristics since improvements in glucose control are similar.

FDA approved telaprevir (Incivek, Vertex) tablets to treat certain adults with chronic hepatitis C infection.

FDA has approved rilpivirine (Edurant, Tibotec Therapeutics, a division of Centocor Ortho Biotech) in combination with other antiretroviral drugs for the treatment of HIV-1 infection in adults who have never taken HIV therapy.

Proton pump inhibitors are associated with a 29% increased risk of fracture, including a 31% increased risk of hip fracture and a 54% increased risk of vertebral fracture, according to a study published in the May/June 2011 issue of Annals of Family Medicine.

More than half of Medicare claims for atypical antipsychotic drugs are erroneous, amounting to $116 million, according to a 48-page report released May 4 by the Office of the Inspector General.

Pediatric patients with moderately to severely active ulcerative colitis demonstrated a clinical response with infliximab (Remicade, Centocor Ortho Biotech), according to data from a phase 3 randomized, multicenter, open-label study.

There is no safe therapeutic window of time for using NSAIDs in patients with prior myocardial infarction. Even short-term treatment with most NSAIDs appears associated with increased risk of death and recurrent MI. In general, NSAIDs should be limited from a cardiovascular safety point of view, according to a study published in Circulation.

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Ariad Pharmaceuticals' experimental cancer drug may improve overall survival in patients with advanced sarcoma, according to data from a phase III trial released Wednesday.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - A drug from Pfizer Inc delayed progression of advanced kidney cancer by nearly seven months, and by two months longer than a commonly used medicine, in previously treated patients, according to data from a late stage clinical trial.

Adult patients with schizophrenia treated with lurasidone HCl tablets (Latuda, Sunovion Pharmaceuticals) had minimal weight gain and metabolic changes, according to the results from a new pooled data analysis of short- and long-term studies, which were presented at the Annual Meeting of the American Psychiatric Association in Honolulu, Hawaii.

For the fourth consecutive year, diabetes therapy topped the list of contributors to drug use trends in therapeutic categories, contributing 16.1% to overall growth in drug spending in 2010 due to an increasing number of patients, according to the recently released 2011 Medco Drug Trend Report, which tracks utilization and spending.

Denosumab (Xgeva, Amgen) significantly increased bone metastasis-free survival for more than 4 months in men with castrate-resistant metastatic prostate cancer that had not yet spread to bone, according to results of a landmark study of Xgeva, presented at a late-breaking plenary session at the American Urological Association?s 2011 annual meeting in Washington, DC.

FDA has approved everolimus (Afinitor, Novartis) tablets to treat patients with progressive neuroendocrine tumors of pancreatic origin that cannot be removed by surgery or that have spread to other parts of the body.

The National Lipid Association is kicking off a public health campaign about familial hypercholesterolemia on May 18. The start of the campaign, ?FH: It?s Relative?Know Your Family Cholesterol History,? coincides with NLA?s Annual Scientific Sessions in New York City.

The lipid-lowering efficacy and tolerability of bile acid sequestrants suggest that these agents have potential in pediatric patients with familial hypercholesterolemia, according to a recent literature review from the University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine.

The American Heart Association recently released its updated cardiovascular disease prevention guidelines for women. The guidelines emphasize practical medical advice that works in the "real world" rather than on findings primarily observed in clinical research.

Two of the most commonly used treatments for neovascular AMD, ranibizumab (Lucentis, Genentech), approved in 2006 by FDA, and the other commonly used ?off-label,? bevacizumab (Avastin, Genentech), resulted in similar improvements in visual acuity, according to a new randomized controlled trial published in NEJM.

FDA recently issued warning letters to companies that manufacture and market over-the-counter products, including hand sanitizers, that claim to prevent infection from methicillin-resistant Staphylocococcus aureus.

FDA has approved everolimus (Afinitor, Novartis) tablets to treat patients with progressive neuroendocrine tumors of pancreatic origin that cannot be removed by surgery or that have spread to other parts of the body (metastatic).

The Academy of Managed Care Pharmacy recently installed 4 new members to its board of directors. The new board members were sworn in April 29 at AMCP?s 23rd Annual Meeting & Showcase in Minneapolis.

In patients with chronic low back pain with comorbidities such as hypertension, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease, extended-release oxymorphone (Opana ER, Endo Pharmaceuticals) may be a safe and effective alternative, according to a study presented at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Pain Medicine, National Harbor, Md.

No new or unexpected safety issues occurred during long-term treatment with a fixed-dose combination of naproxen and esomeprazole magnesium (Vimovo) in patients at risk of NSAID-associated upper gastrointestinal ulcers, according to data presented at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Pain Medicine, National Harbor, Md.

FDA has approved abiraterone acetate (Zytiga, Centocor Ortho Biotech), an oral, once-daily medication for use in combination with prednisone for the treatment of men with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer who have received prior chemotherapy containing docetaxel.

Hemoglobin A1c levels below 6% are associated with a small but significant increased risk of mortality in elderly patients, according to a retrospective cohort study published online in Diabetes Care.

FDA approved the use of meningococcal (A, C, Y, W-135) polysaccharide diphtheria toxoid conjugate vaccine (Menactra, Sanofi Pasteur) in children aged as young as 9 months for the prevention of invasive meningococcal disease caused by Neisseria meningitidis serogroups A, C, Y, and W-135.