CP, June 2017, Vol 9, No 6

Chronic oedema: treatment and the impact of prescribed medicines

Early diagnosis of lower limb oedema is crucial to prevent early oedema becoming chronic. Pharmacists and other healthcare professionals are ideally placed to identify patients on certain medicines at higher risk of oedema, and should be aware of signs of chronic oedema when assessing pati…

Why the term ‘prediabetes’ may cause more harm than good

Labelling patients as ‘prediabetic’ may not improve health outcomes because of inconsistencies with the testing and diagnosing of the condition, among other factors, writes Eleanor Barry.…

Examining the implications of analytical and remote monitoring in pharmacy practice

Remote patient monitoring (RPM) incorporates digital technology that collects health data from individuals in one location and electronically transmits secure data to healthcare providers in a different location for review and assessment. This allows healthcare professionals to make recommendat…

Pain patients treated with ketamine less likely to experience depression

Large-scale data from the US Food and Drug Administration suggest that ketamine should be studied for use in patients suffering from depression.…

Doxycycline shows promise as repurposed drug against Parkinson’s disease

Repurposing drugs that have already been tested for safety against novel targets has become an attractive strategy for researchers trying to find cures for progressive neurodegenerative disorders such as Parkinson’s disease.…

Risk of fracture from benzodiazepine and Z-drugs higher for short-term users

Meta analysis shows that fracture risk is highest among new users of both benzodiazepines and Z-drugs.…

PPI use in infancy increases childhood fracture risk

Proton pump inhibitors linked to higher risk of bone fractures in children as well as adults.…

Silica cages could keep vaccines intact without need for ‘cold chain’

Ensilication enables protein-based substances to withstand heat of up to 100ºC and still function as normal.…

Peptide found in frog mucus protects against influenza virus

In the search for new drugs to treat cases of flu, scientists have found a unique class of antiviral agent in amphibians.…

Common oral contraceptive pill has negative effect on general well-being

An estimated 100 million women use the contraceptive pill, but surprisingly little is known about its effect on overall health.…