Set Pharmacy Copays to Reduce Costs, Avoid Cost-Shifting
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Express Scripts research reveals how changes to prescription benefit copayments can reduce healthcare costs through greater use of generic drugs without shifting costs to consumers.
“A study released today, based on an analysis of 2004 prescription claims, indicates a pharmacy benefit plan design that increases the differential between brand and generic copayments by $10 can expect to achieve a 3 to 4 percentage point increase in the generic fill rate, which can translate into a 3 to 4 percent savings in drug costs,” says Jake Cedergreen, director, benefit design and modeling.
All Children Need to Be Safely Secured in Motor Vehicles
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Infants should ride in rear-facing car safety seats until they have reached both 20 pounds AND one year of age. The AAP recommends keeping children rear-facing to the highest weight or height allowed by their car safety seat’s manufacturer. Never place a rear-facing car safety seat in front of an air bag.
Children who have outgrown their rear-facing seats should ride in forward-facing car safety seats for as long as they fit well (ears below the top of the back of the seat and shoulders below the top harness slots or until they reach the top weight or height allowed for their seats).
Team Discovers Possible “Universal Strategy” to Combat Addiction
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An international research team led by the University of Saskatchewan has discovered a signaling pathway in the brain involved in drug addiction, together with a method for blocking its action, that may point to a single treatment strategy for most addictions.
Their findings appear in the March issue of the prestigious journal Nature Medicine.
The team, led by Xia Zhang, associate professor in the U of S department of psychiatry, found that a naturally occurring enzyme known as PTEN acts on the part of the brain where many drugs of abuse exert their rewarding effects - the ventral tegmental area (VTA).
FDA affirms safety of Aspartame
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The Calorie Control Council has stated that a rat study conducted by Italy’s Ramazzini Institute is totally contradictory to the extensive scientific research and regulatory reviews conducted on aspartame. The U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) has said they are not recommending any changes in the use of aspartame.
According to Dr. George Pauli of the FDA, “FDA requested the data from the Ramazzini study in July 2005 but we have as not yet received the data. The agency cannot, therefore, comment on the study until it has the opportunity to review the study data, in depth. Based on the large body of evidence we have reviewed, including several studies on carcinogenicity, which showed no adverse effects and data on how aspartame is metabolized by humans, we have no reason to believe that aspartame would cause cancer. Thus, it remains FDA’s position that use [of aspartame] is safe.”
Levitra has mental health benefits, study suggests
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The impotence drug Levitra (also known as vardenafil) improves erectile function and depression in men with both disorders, research shows.
Although depression is common among men with erectile dysfunction (ED), previous studies have not investigated the potential mental health benefits of Levitra in men with ED, investigators point out in the American Journal of Psychiatry.
Dr. Raymond Rosen from UMDNJ-Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, Piscataway, New Jersey and colleagues evaluated the efficacy of Levitra in the treatment of 280 men with ED and untreated depression. The men were assigned to Levitra or placebo for 12 weeks.
Steroid puff best for kids with persistent asthma
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In a study of children with mild-to-moderate persistent asthma, treatment with fluticasone (Flovent), an inhaled steroid, was consistently more effective than treatment with montelukast (Singulair), an oral anti-asthma drug from the leukotriene receptor antagonist (LTRA) class of agents, investigators report.
In the 8-week crossover study of 127 asthmatic children 6 to 17 years of age, fluticasone was associated with significantly more asthma-free days, better asthma control, and decreased need for albuterol “rescue” puffs, compared with montelukast, the investigators report.
Neuroprotective agent improves outcome after ischemic stroke
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The first neuroprotective agent to show positive results in a phase 3 trial significantly reduces disability after ischemic stroke, according to results of the Stroke-Acute Ischemic NXY Treatment (SAINT I) trial published in the February 9, 2006 issue of The New England Journal of Medicine.
The trial involved 1,699 patients with acute ischemic stroke randomly assigned to receive either a 72-hour infusion of NXY-059 (AstraZeneca, Wilmington, DE) or placebo within six hours of the onset of ischemic stroke. The primary endpoint was disability at 90 days as measured by the Rankin scale, with 0 meaning no residual disability and 5 indicating bedbound and requiring constant care.
Use of antidepressants during pregnancy linked to neonatal abstinence syndrome in infants
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Almost one-third of 60 newborn infants whose mothers took antidepressants during pregnancy experienced neonatal abstinence syndrome, a type of withdrawal with symptoms that include high-pitched crying, tremors and disturbed sleep, according to a study in the February issue of Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine.
Between one-tenth and one-fourth of women will develop depression in their lifetimes, according to background information in the article. The stress of pregnancy can worsen the condition and increase the need for medications.
Macrophage Signaling Affects Hormone Resistance in Prostate Tumors
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Interaction between prostate cancer cells and immune cells called macrophages may be a source of inflammatory signals capable of impacting the effectiveness of androgen antagonists, the most common and effective treatment for prostate cancer, according to a new study by researchers at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) School of Medicine.
Male hormones called androgens are essential for the physiological function and growth of the prostate gland, and anti-androgen treatment, which blocks the expression of androgen target genes, is widely used for the treatment of prostate cancer. Unfortunately, most patients eventually progress to an antagonist-resistant or hormone independent form of cancer, according to David W. Rose, Ph.D., associate professor in UCSD’s Department of Medicine, Division of Endocrinology and Metabolism, and Moores Cancer Center. Rose is principle investigator of the study, to be published in the Feb. 10 issue of the journal Cell.
Hormone linked to good hearing as we age
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Researchers have linked a hormone known to adjust levels of key brain chemicals to the quality of our hearing as we age. The more of the hormone that older people have in their bloodstream, the better their hearing is, and the less of the hormone, the worse their hearing is.
The hormone, aldosterone, is known to regulate kidney function and also plays a role in controlling levels of two crucial signaling chemicals in the nervous system, potassium and sodium. For nerves to send signals crisply and work properly, potassium and sodium must be in precise proportion, without any disruption in the molecular channels or gates through which they move.
Low birth weight infants overcome difficulties by adulthood
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Look around, can you tell who among your friends were tiny, preemie babies?
As young adults, the majority of extremely low birth-weight infants are attaining similar levels of education, employment and independence as normal birth-weight infants, according to a study by researchers at the Michael G. DeGroote School of Medicine at McMaster University in the February 8 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA).
Intimate Kissing Quadruples Risk of Meningitis in Teenagers
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Intimate kissing with multiple partners almost quadruples a teenager’s risk of meningococcal disease, finds a study published online by the BMJ today.
Meningococcal disease is a life threatening condition with two incidence peaks: in early childhood and in adolescence.
The incidence and fatality rate among teenagers in England and the United States rose dramatically during the 1990s, but little is known about the risk factors for this disease in adolescents.
Worst Off Will Be Most at Risk Under Partial Smoking Ban
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A partial as opposed to a full ban on smoking in public places could put those living in the most socially deprived areas of the country at most risk, warn doctors writing in this week’s BMJ.
The letter comes as MPs prepare to vote next week on Government proposals for a part-ban across England - a move which would worsen health inequalities say the authors, a Director of Public Health and colleagues working in South London.
No evidence melatonin relieves jet lag
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Melatonin is described as a natural nightcap but researchers said on Friday there is no scientific evidence that it relieves jet lag.
The hormone, which is available in over-the-counter supplements, helps regulate the body’s daily rhythms. Shift workers and air travellers take it to improve their sleep patterns.
Advisers urge heart risk warning on ADHD drugs
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Drugs taken by millions for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder should come with strong warnings that they may raise some patients’ risk of heart problems, a U.S. advisory panel said on Thursday.
The committee narrowly voted to recommend the warning even though members agreed it was unclear if the drugs contribute to sudden deaths, heart attacks and other complications.
