Pharmacological phenomena

ADHD medication associated with reduced risk of adverse life events

In nearly 150,000 patients with ADHD, first incidences of suicidal behaviour, substance misuse, transport accidents and criminal convictions were lower in those who had started drug treatment within three months of diagnosis.…

Only one in ten people report side effects, Healthcare Improvement Scotland warns

Healthcare Improvement Scotland is calling for greater awareness of the Yellow Card scheme, as too few patients report medication side effects.…

MHRA approves first needle-free emergency treatment for anaphylaxis

EURneffy, a single-dose nasal spray, is approved for the emergency treatment of anaphylaxis in patients weighing 30kg or more.…

Clozapine: is it time to relax blood monitoring rules?

Patients taking clozapine, the only recommended drug for treatment-resistant schizophrenia, are required to undergo frequent blood monitoring — a system introduced decades ago following a series of patient deaths. However, new evidence suggests that the stringency of these rules may be causing mor…

Antidepressant discontinuation does not cause severe symptoms in most people, study finds

Researchers found that patients who stopped antidepressants reported discontinuation symptoms that were below the threshold for clinical significance.…

Pharmacists encouraged to report GLP-1 side effects amid pharmacogenomics study

The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency has called on healthcare professionals to submit Yellow Card reports on behalf of patients who develop acute pancreatitis while using GLP-1 receptor agonists.…

Recognising adverse events and using the Yellow Card system

An overview of how to identify, manage and report adverse events.…

Yellow Card reporting in East London NHS Foundation Trust

The Yellow Card scheme is a system for reporting adverse drug reactions (ADRs) from medicines or adverse incidents with medical devices in the UK, ensuring that these products are safe for both healthcare professionals and patients​1–3​. Reporting these issues helps the MHRA to identify new sa…

Eye disorder is a ‘very rare’ side effect of weight-loss drugs, concludes EMA review

The review found that non-arteritic anterior ischemic optic neuropathy may affect up to 1 in 10,000 people taking semaglutide medicines.…

Antidepressants ‘substantially increase risk’ of low blood pressure when standing up in older people, study results suggest

Researchers found that patients aged over 60 years who were prescribed selective serotonin re-uptake inhibitors were at a four-fold increased risk of postural hypotension in first four weeks of use.…