Community Practice

Antipsychotic medication should be used on elderly dementia patients only as a last resort, authors of a recent study said, but they found that some antipsychotics are more dangerous than others after examining data from thousands of nursing-home residents aged 65 or older.

An FDA advisory panel voted 12-2 to recommend approval of aclidinium bromide (Forest Laboratories and Almirall SA) 400 µg twice daily for the long-term maintenance treatment of bronchospasm associated with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, including chronic bronchitis and emphysema.

FDA has approved lucinactant (Surfaxin, Discovery Labs) for the prevention of respiratory distress syndrome (RDS) in premature infants at high risk for RDS. Surfaxin is the first synthetic, peptide-containing surfactant approved for use in neonatal medicine.

New guidelines for the use of the quadrivalent human papillomavirus vaccine, published by the American Academy of Pediatrics, recommend for the first time vaccinating adolescent boys as well as girls.

Closed pharmacy networks are back and pharmacies are fighting them. That's the gist of a suit filed by four independent pharmacies against the federal government in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina last week.

The National Community Pharmacists Association is urging the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to stop requiring duplicative fees from pharmacists

The National Community Pharmacists Association criticized a new ad campaign that implies that retail pharmacists are not doing all they can to curb prescription drug abuse.

The Online Pharmacy Safety Act would help consumers protect themselves against the growing threat of illegitimate online drug sellers, the National Association of Chain Drug Stores told members of Congress.

The New Zealand pharmacist returns to discuss in more detail the differences between practicing in his new home country and in the United States. Some differences may surprise you.

Thursday, FDA updated its recommendations concerning drug-drug interactions between protease inhibitors and statins, warning of an increased risk of muscle injury (myopathy). The most serious form of myopathy, rhabdomyolysis, can damage kidneys and lead to kidney failure, which can be fatal.

The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) wants all U.S. adults to get vaccinated against whooping cough, according to the Associated Press. The panel voted to expand its recommendation to include all those aged 65 years and older who haven?t gotten a whooping cough shot as an adult.

A new weight-loss medication got an overwhelming endorsement on Wednesday from FDA's Endocrinologic and Metabolic Drugs Advisory Committee. The committee voted 20-2 in favor of approving phentermine/topiramate (Qnexa, Vivus).

California pharmacists are claiming victory after the U.S. Supreme Court sent 3 cases back to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in Los Angeles. The cases involved injunctions halting Medicaid reimbursement cuts to pharmacies and other providers in California.

Zinc used in addition to antibiotics significantly reduced mortality in children ages 6 months to 59 months with severe pneumonia when compared with antibiotics alone, according to the findings of a recent study done in Uganda.

A recent study challenges the conventional assumption about how Clostridium difficile infection spreads in hospitals, finding that almost three-quarters of the new cases aren?t transmitted by patients in the same ward.

There are no beneficial effects of supplementation with relatively low doses of B vitamins and/or omega-3 fatty acids on cancer outcomes in individuals with prior cardiovascular disease, according to a study published online February 13 in the Archives of Internal Medicine.

No significant difference was found in treating patients experiencing clinically diagnosed uncomplicated acute rhinosinusitis with antibiotic amoxicillin compared with patients who received placebo, according to a study in the February 15 issue of JAMA.

American Associated Pharmacies (AAP) announced today that it is partnering with RxAlly, a first-of-a-kind alliance of more than 20,000 pharmacies nationwide, creating the largest performance network of pharmacies in the United States.

FDA announced a series of steps to increase the supply of critically needed cancer drugs, including temporarily allowing 2 drugs to be imported. The moves are building on President Barack Obama?s executive order to help prevent future drug shortages, FDA said.

More than a half million bottles of Infants' Tylenol Oral Suspension, 1 oz. grape, have been recalled voluntarily by McNeil Consumer Healthcare because of complaints about using the dosing system, the company announced.

FDA has approved the first medication therapy, mifepristone (Korlym, Corcept Therapeutics), for endrogenous Cushing?s syndrome, a condition that, left untreated, has a mortality rate of 50 percent after 5 years.

The Drug Enforcement Administration will hold 2 one-day regional conferences in West Palm Beach, Fla., next month in an effort to assist pharmacy personnel in identifying and responding to potential diversion activity.

California has become the first state to regulate dextromethorphan (DXM), an antitussive in Benylin, Pertussin, Robitussin, and dozens of other over-the-counter cough and cold products. A state law that went into effect Jan. 1 prohibits sales of products containing DXM to anyone under the age of 18 without a prescription.

The American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy (AACP) has formally joined 5 other national health professions to create the Interprofessional Education Collaborative (IPEC), a new national organization that will focus on improved integration and coordination of the education of pharmacists and other healthcare workers to provide more collaborative care.

What’s different on your local drug-store counters this month? You can try 2 new flavors of organic tooth powders. There’s a prenatal vitamin designed to optimize DHA levels in mother’s milk. You’ll find a cocktail of natural oils for spot relief of pain or dry skin. A new hand and body lotion promotes healthy blood flow. A multivitamin has been created to improve your vision. Five organic lip and body balms now come in easy-to-carry containers. And there are even more new over-the-counter items featured in the print edition of Drug Topics.

Community pharmacists are encouraged to express their views to lawmakers at the National Association of Chain Drug Stores’ 4th annual RxIMPACT Day in Washington, D.C., in March.

Retail pharmacy groups are urging Congress to reject budget proposals that would limit pharmacy choice for TRICARE beneficiaries.

A whopping 82% of 600 Georgia voters surveyed said they oppose mandatory mail-order plans.

Men with erectile dysfunction (ED) also were more likely to have had open-angle glaucoma than those without ED, according to a study published in the February 12 online issue of Opthalmology.

FDA and 3 drug manufacturers say they are working to allay the concerns of health organizations that thesupply of methotrexate -- used to treat acute lymphoblastic leukemia in children – is in danger of running out