News | Respiratory tract diseases

News

Over-the-counter nasal sprays reduce symptom duration in at-risk patients, study results suggest

Antibiotic use was also reduced in all intervention groups.…

Published: 15 July 2024

Letter

The narrow age range chosen for the RSV vaccination programme is disappointing

I am a retired pharmacist and friends are asking me why there is such a narrow age range for older adults chosen for the NHS vaccination programme against respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), which is due to begin in September 2024. Fortunately, I fall within the chosen age cohort but many of…

Published: 4 July 2024

Feature

‘Beyond weight loss’: what is the future of semaglutide?

As warnings mount around the dangerous accessibility of semaglutide products Wegovy and Ozempic as quick weight loss hacks, researchers are questioning whether the drug has wider implications for other conditions.…

Published: 27 June 2024

News

Community pharmacies to be commissioned to provide RSV vaccination programme

The programme was announced following advice from the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation.…

Published: 26 June 2024

News

Joint guidance for asthma recommends replacing SABA with corticosteroid inhalers

The draft guidance proposes the use of combined inhaled corticosteroid/formoterol inhalers over previously preferred short-acting beta agonists.…

Published: 26 June 2024

News

Greener inhaler propellant is therapeutically equivalent to traditional alternatives, study results suggest

Study authors reported overall bioequivalence between inhalers that use HFA-152a as a propellant and traditionally used devices with HFA-134a as a propellant.…

Published: 21 June 2024

Feature

‘Unresolvable conflict’: are links to big tobacco changing inhaler prescribing?

The takeover of inhaler company Vectura by tobacco firm Philip Morris International has stirred up debate and controversy, with experts raising questions around whether the NHS is doing enough to make the connection clear to prescribers and patients.…

Published: 6 June 2024

News

NHS spends £430m on inhalers linked to Philip Morris since Vectura takeover

Exclusive: An analysis by The Pharmaceutical Journal of prescribing data has raised questions from experts on whether more should be done to highlight the inhalers‘ links to the tobacco company.…

Published: 6 June 2024

News

Serious shortage protocols for clarithromycin reactivated as whooping cough cases rise

The protocols were first introduced in 2023, and are now due to expire on 21 June 2024.…

Published: 24 May 2024

News

NICE terminates appraisal of medicine for the treatment of persistent cough

Manufacturer Merck Sharpe & Dohme has decided not to supply the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence with evidence on use of gefapixant (Lyfnua).…

Published: 20 May 2024