Drug Formulary Review articles from January 2005

Drug Formulary Review archives from January 2005

Study argues ACE inhibitors should not be used in some heart patients; trial results should change practice immediately, physician says.(angiotensin-converting-enzyme)
January 1, 2005... A new study argues that many heart patients receiving modern conventional therapy do not benefit from angiotensin-converting-enzyme (ACE) inhibitors if the patients have stable coronary heart disease and preserved left ventricular function. ...

Program improves heart patients' outcomes: hospital pharmacists key to success.
January 1, 2005... A discharge program that placed cardiovascular patients on appropriate medications and scheduled follow-up care not only reduced the patients' risk of readmission to the hospital, but also significantly decreased their risk of death. In...

JCAHO: USP/NF Chapter 797 compliance confusing: hospitals should have action plan in place now.(Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations)
January 1, 2005... In the April 2004 issue of its Perspectives publication, the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations announced it would begin in July to survey compliance with the new chapter in the 2004 United States...

Report: almost half of Americans use at least one prescription drug.
January 1, 2005... Almost half of all Americans take at least one prescription medicine and one in six take three or more medications, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' annual checkup on Americans' health. The report, Health,...

FDA announces new radio-frequency ID initiative for drugs.
January 1, 2005... The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has published a Compliance Policy Guide (CPG) for implementing radiofrequency identification (RFID) feasibility studies and pilot programs that are designed to enhance the safety and security of the...

FDA strengthens labels on two types of antibiotics.(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as announced labeling changes regarding penicillin G benzathine and penicillin G procaine injectable suspension (Bicillin CR) and penicillin G benzathine injectable suspension (Bicillin LA). These...

Rx drug law may help low-income Medicare beneficiaries.
January 1, 2005... Low-income people with Medicare who sign up for new Part D drug plans and receive the additional subsidies--an estimated 8.7 million people--are projected to pay 83% less for prescription drugs in 2006 than they would have spent if the Medicare...

New FDA approvals.
January 1, 2005... These drugs recently were approved by the FDA: * Natalizumab (Tysabri) by Biogen Idec and Elan Pharmaceuticals. The FDA has licensed a new biologic approach to treat patients with relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis (MS) to reduce the...

Duloxetine (Cymbalta) formulary evaluation: part 1 of 2: mechanism of action, pharmacokinetics, indication, dosing, special populations, safety, and cost.
January 1, 2005... Background The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved duloxetine (Cymbalta), marketed by Eli Lilly & Co., on Aug. 3, 2004, for the treatment of major depressive disorder (MDD) in adults. Duloxetine is a serotonin-norepinephrine...

CE questions.
January 1, 2005... Pharmacists participate in this continuing education program by reading the article, using the provided references for further research, and studying the CE questions. Participants should select what they believe to be the correct answers. ...

News Briefs.
January 1, 2005... Report: Almost half of Americans use at least one prescription drug Almost half of all Americans take at least one prescription medicine and one in six take three or more medications, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human...