Clinical News

Patients hospitalized for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) are at high risk for 30- and 60-day readmissions. In 2008, the mean 60-day admission rate following an emergency department visit of COPD patients was 18% and the mean readmission rate was more than 30%.

FDA's revamped REMS website enables users to find what they need and download it more easily.

A targeted intervention at an urban Veterans Affairs Medical Center helped to improve the prescribing practices for elderly veterans discharged from the emergency department

FDA advisory committee okays two monoclonal antibody formulations in two days for treatment of hypercholesterolemia.

Is rivaroxaban the best therapeutic option for this patient?

Edoxaban is an oral factor Xa inhibitor that prevents thrombin generation and platelet aggregation, and therefore thrombus formation.

It’s time to re-examine the current assumption that a diagnosis and subsequent treatment of osteoporosis will prevent hip fractures in the elderly, according to a recent report in the BMJ.

Vaccination errors made up 7 percent of all reports to the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS) from 2000-2013, according to new data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Last December, FDA granted accelerated approval to nivolumab for treatment of unresectable or metastatic melanoma in patients with cancer that no longer responds to other therapies.

Adding pharmacists to the care team will result in better patient outcomes, lower payer costs, relief for physicians, and better use of pharmacists' skills and experience. It's a no-brainer.

Secondary prevention of MI still calls for a careful balancing act between risks and benefits.

An investigational vaccine for herpes zoster provided significant benefit to patients 50 and older, with little difference in efficacy among those in their 50s, 60s, and 70s, according to a phase 3 international trial [Zoster Efficacy Study in Adults 50 Years of Age or Older (ZOE-50)].

When addiction treatment was added to the buprenorphine Rx the result was greatly improved outcomes.

Yet another study has reinforced what several others have also documented - pharmacist involvement in patient care improves medication adherence and healthcare outcomes.

The new CPE series that begins this month will focus on treatment and management of respiratory diseases.

The CDC committee voted on 2015 protocols for use of meningitis, influenza, and HPV vaccines at its February meeting.

A new dantrolene sodium suspension with improved properties offers an advantage over the older formulations- and a much higher price tag.

Auryxia, an iron-based phosphate binder, was approved September 5, 2014.

Oral anticoagulation therapy is the treatment of choice for clot prevention in hemodialysis patients, despite contradictory efficacy data.

If the CSTDs contain ABS, there is risk of leakage and failure of the devices, and possible product contamination.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has released its lists of approved biosimilar licensed products, called the “Purple Book”. The invaluable site includes the date a biological product was licensed under the PHS Act and whether FDA evaluated the biological product for reference product exclusivity.

FDA has approved cholic acid (Cholbam), a once-daily treatment for pediatric and adult patients who have bile acid synthesis disorders due to single enzyme defects. It is also approved as an adjunct to standard care for patients with peroxisomal disorders, such as Zellweger spectrum disorders.

A recent ISMP study found that the government’s adverse event reporting system is hampered by incomplete reports from manufacturers.

Ceftolozane/tazobactam was approved to treat complicated urinary tract infections and to treat - in combination with metronidazole - complicated intra-abdominal infections.

New study finds that AF patients under 65 years of age but with a CHA2DS2-VASc score of 1 are unlikely to benefit from anticoagulation therapy.

Discounts and rebates negotiated by some third-party payers are ensuring the place of hepatitis C drugs in their formularies.

Originally approved in 2010 for stroke prevention in patients with nonvalvular afib, dabigatran is now approved to treat DVT and PE in patients who have received parenteral anticoagulants.

If patients have multiple risk factors, daily low-dose aspirin may not make much difference to their potential for CV events.

The next few years should produce some big wins - and some big winners.

FDA approved 41 new molecular entities in 2014, including several for cancer, type 2 diabetes, and hepatitis C.