Anti-Constipation Drug Found Especially Useful for Older Patients - CME Teaching Brief - MedPage Today:
"The Medicare set may benefit even more than younger patients from the new anti-constipation drug Amitiza (lubiprostone), investigators reported at Digestive Disease Week sessions here.

Indeed, elderly patients may be a particular target for Amitiza, according to a team of researchers from Sucampo Pharmaceuticals, the drug's manufacturer, who presented data in a poster session.

'We were looking in our pivotal trials at the efficacy of Amitiza in a subgroup [consisting of] of elderly patients,' said Sucampo's associate director of clinical development, Taryn R. Joswick, B.S. 'We found they had a lower rate of adverse events, a lower incidence of nausea.'

Previous research convinced the FDA that Amitiza is safe and effective for chronic constipation in adult patients in general, including older patients, and the agency approved the drug at the end of January. But constipation is particularly common among the elderly. Between 15% and 20% of Americans 65 or older suffer from the ailment by some estimates, and it may affect up to half of all nursing home residents.

Amitiza works differently from any other drug so far approved for chronic constipation, she noted. It acts through chloride channels to increase the fluid in the intestines, speeding transit in the intestines and colon..... "

Liz Taylor Dismisses Alzheimer's Report
(The New York Times: FREE 1-TIME REGISTRATION)

Botox Soothes Overactive Bladder
- [CME Teaching Brief - MedPage Today]
"Botox (botulinum toxin type A) injected directly into the bladder's detrusor muscle at 30 different sites not only tamed an overactive organ but kept the bladder calm for almost a year, according to Swiss researchers.

Unlike Botox treatments in other muscular disorders or for cosmetic repair, where injections must be repeated at frequent intervals, one injection could provide a long-term cure, Daniel Schmid Jr., M.D., of the University of Zurich reported at the American Urological Association meeting here.

"We were very surprised that we didn't have to re-inject these people after three months or six months," Dr. Schmid said.

Nine months after the initial treatment, 82% of 150 patients, refractory to anticholinergics, who were treated with Botox, were continent, a statistically significant improvement (P<.001 level), Dr. Schmid said. "We can now say that the mean effectiveness of one series of injections is 11 months," he added.

At 11 months, 43% of the patients did not require any further treatment, while 23% of the patients have required re-injections. Thirty-one percent of patients have been able to control the return of urgency with anticholinergic drugs...."

Patients Fail To Grasp Importance of Cholesterol Numbers
"Patients may not be getting the message about the heart risks associated with dyslipidemia when the message is delivered by-the-numbers, according to researchers here.

A better way to drive home the message is to concentrate on cardiovascular risk-adjusted age-a formula that homes in on the grim fact that, as an example, a 42-year-old man with elevated Framingham Heart Score has the heart of a 70-year-old man, Brown researchers reported in the May-June issue of Annals of Family Medicine....."

Harvard Medical: The Skinny on Fat
"It’s especially easy these days to feel that the gurus of health don’t know what they’re talking about. What else would explain the recent results from the large, 8-year-long Women’s Health Initiative study showing that a low fat diet—long a mainstay of government healthy eating recommendations—does almost nothing to reduce the risk of heart disease, stroke, breast cancer, or colon cancer?....."

Vaccine to Cut Risk of Shingles in Older People Is Approved - New York Times:
"Federal drug regulators have approved the first vaccine intended to reduce the risk of shingles in people 60 and older.

The vaccine, called Zostavax, is a souped-up version of the chickenpox vaccine. Both chickenpox and shingles are caused by the herpes zoster virus, which is present in almost everyone. .Zostavax, made by Merck, works by mimicking a shingles attack, but without the pain or blisters that shingles causes. The vaccine strengthens the body's immune response against the virus, reducing the chances of an outbreak, as well as the severity of the disease if it does occur.The science behind the vaccine is relatively simple. Zostavax is roughly equivalent to 14 doses of the pediatric chickenpox vaccine. Nonetheless, Zostavax represents a significant breakthrough, several scientists said. It is the first therapeutic vaccine, meaning it prevents or eases the severity of the problems from an infection that has already occurred.Scientists have been hoping..."

OUR NEW WEBSITE: "ARICEPT NEWS"....[click here]
ARICEPT is approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to treat people who have been diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease (AD)...

OUR NEW WEBSITE: "EXELON NEWS"....[click here]
Exelon is approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to treat people who have been diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease (AD)...