Pharmacology

New cancer therapies, particularly agents that block vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) signaling, have been successful and are now used as a first line therapy for some tumors, but almost 100% of patients who take VEGF inhibitors (VEGFIs) develop high blood pressure, and a subset develops severe hypertension. The mechanisms underlying VEGF inhibitor-induced hypertension need to be better understood and there is a need for clear guidelines and improved management, say investigators behind the review in the Canadian Journal of Cardiology. "Exactly how VEGFIs cause hypertension is…

A clinical trial involving 14 sites provides new evidence on a growing controversy in the medical community – whether treating infants with steroids to augment surgery improves outcomes.  The multi-center study concludes that treating infants with high doses of steroids fails to improve medical outcomes in the end-stage pediatric liver disease biliary atresia and leads to earlier onset of serious adverse events.  Biliary atresia is the leading cause of pediatric liver transplantation in the world. The disease accounts for about 50 percent of transplants in children and 10 percent of…

ADHD stimulant medications are being shared among high school and college students with peers who don't have the condition, to try to improve their academic performance,  Two recent studies examined physicians' perceptions and knowledge of diversion of stimulant medications for Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) as well as practices physicians use to prevent diversion among their patients prescribed these medications. The results showed that while almost half of all physicians surveyed believe diversion is common among teens with ADHD, the majority never received training…

In the 1960s, "speed freaks", people hooked on amphetamines, still avoided Ritalin. It was too dangerous. In the 1990s, Ritalin suddenly became a medication. For kids diagnosed with ADD, it sped them up so much it basically slowed them down. But for people who don't need it, ADD medication is just a stimulant, and nearly 20 percent of students at an Ivy League college reported misusing a prescription stimulant while studying, and one-third of students did not view such misuse as cheating according results presented today at the Pediatric Academic Societies (PAS) annual meeting in Vancouver.…

In the 1950s and 1960s, pregnant women with morning sickness were often prescribed thalidomide. Shortly after the medicine was released on the market, a reported 10,000 infants were born with an extreme form of the rare congenital phocomelia syndrome, which caused death in 50 percent of cases and severe physical and mental disabilities in others. Although various factors are now known to cause phocomelia, the prominent roots of the disease can be found in the use of the drug thalidomide.  It ignited the anti-pharmaceutical cultural firestorm that still burns today. But why it happened…

Tart cherry juice in the morning and evening may help you sleep better at night, according to a paper presented today at the American Society of Nutrition meeting. Insomnia is a common health problem among older adults, impacting an estimated 23 to 34 percent of the population ages 65 and older. Insomnia – defined as trouble sleeping on average more than three nights per week – can be an annoyance for some, but long-lasting sleeplessness can seriously affect health, especially in the elderly. Insomnia is linked to a higher prevalence of chronic pain, high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes…

Matthew Miller, M.D., Sc.D., of the Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, and colleagues, writing in JAMA (doi:10.1001/jamainternmed.2014.1053) analyzed data from 162,625 people (between the ages of 10 to 64 years) with depression who started antidepressant treatment with a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor at modal (the most prescribed doses on average) or at higher than modal doses from 1998 through 2010.  The rate of suicidal behavior (deliberate self-harm or DSH) among children and adults (24 years or younger) who started antidepressant therapy at high doses was about…

The latest fad in implied health benefits that can slip under the regulatory radar are edible flowers from China.  Why implied? Because they are rich in phenolics and have good antioxidant capacity.  What will that do? No one knows. Antioxidants haven't been shown to help anyone at all and phenolics claims were how the rationalization that organic food was healthier arose - and then debunked. To maintain a level of credibility the key phrase "may be partly responsible" is liberally applied. Some edible flowers, which have been used as ingredients, seasoning and garnish in…

Emergency contraceptive pills haven't reduced teen pregnancies or abortions but at least in America those incidents have not risen - in South America, unprotected sex is really taking a pregnancy gamble, even if there is access to a morning after pill. A survey of emergency contraceptive pills in Peru found that 28 percent of the batches studied were either of substandard quality or falsified. Many released the active ingredient too slowly, others had the wrong active ingredient, one batch was basically homeopathy contraception - the researchers couldn't find an active ingredient at all.…

Colic affects about one in five infants in the United States annually and accounts for numerous pediatric visits during the first several months after birth. Among the many claims of probiotic marketing is that it helps with reduction of colic symptoms but a phase III, double blind, randomized placebo controlled trial published in the British Medical Journal concluded that the use of the probiotic L reuteri for infant colic did not reduce crying or fussing in infants nor was it effective in improving infant sleep, functioning or quality of life. The results were no different for babies…