April 14th, 2014
New Opioid Approval: Zohydro
What better time than the present? The question didn’t escape the FDA, which has formally issued approval of a new opioid prescription painkiller called Zohydro. This prescription-only opioid analgesic was approved as a Schedule II drug. Schedule II drugs are more tightly controlled than ...
February 24th, 2014
FDA Launches Secure Supply Chain Pilot Program
The United States Food and Drug Administration — the FDA — has recently approved an initiative to speed specific imported drugs through their approval process. This action enables a much hastier process for these pharmaceuticals than what was previously in place. This in turn ...
January 15th, 2014
Migraines: Placebos vs Prescription Drugs
A study published recently by the Science Translational Medicine periodical concluded that the information provided with migraine drugs is exceptionally likely to affect the drug’s effectiveness. This isn’t to say that a placebo is more effective than an actual prescription-quality ...
June 21st, 2013
New Dietary Supplement Cannitrol Developed to Control Marijuana Use
Marijuana is one of the most widely-used recreational drugs in the world, behind alcohol, caffeine, and tobacco. While marijuana is not usually considered addictive, many habitual users still find it difficult to manage their intake on their own. Cannitrol, a new dietary supplement available ...
June 10th, 2013
Google Still Allowing Ads for Illegal Online Pharmacies
Is there anything you can’t find on Google? Cross prescription pills off that list, as the Internet behemoth is in hot water for allowing illicit online pharmacies to advertise in search results. In 2011, Google forfeited $500 million to the Department of Justice for hosting illegal ads for ...
May 16th, 2013
Man Tricks Girlfriend Into Taking Abortion Pills
28 year-old John Andrew Welden was indicted on one count first degree murder Tuesday in Florida after allegedly tricking his girlfriend into aborting their child. Tampa Bay Times reports that the crime took place in March after an ultrasound performed by the accused’s father, Dr. Stephen ...
April 23rd, 2013
Experimental Drug Springs Hope For Child Born Without Bones
At age three, Janelly Martinez-Amador could not move her body, unable to lift her head or arms. Four years later, she is no longer confined to a bed and can even dance. Janelly Martinez-Amador was born with a rare genetic disease called hypophosphatasia or HPP, which disrupts the mineralization ...
April 18th, 2013
Life on the Pharm: Antibiotic Abuse Leads to Disconcerting Data at the Market
The National Antimicrobial Resistance Monitoring System (NARMS) has discovered shocking rates of antibiotic-resistant bacteria in meats found in supermarkets across the US. In 2011, federal researchers tested 480 samples each of ground beef, ground turkey, pork chops, and chicken breasts, wings ...
April 16th, 2013
Replacing Your Cigarette Addiction
Cigarette smoking is the leading cause of preventable deaths globally. Quitting smoking is incredibly difficult, with more than 90% of attempts resulting in relapse—a rate surpassed only by heroin. The good news is that, despite the frequency of relapse and the adverse public health effects, ...
August 4th, 2011
PTSD Treatment for Veterans May Start to Look Different
A recent study has shown that antipsychotics are no more effective than placebos in helping veterans overcome PTSD symptoms.
July 29th, 2011
Prescription Vending Machines: the Pharmaceutical Wave of the Future
You can purchase an impressive variety of wares from vending machines these days: iPods, pizza, umbrellas, and lobsters (thank you, Japan!) Next in line for instant dispensing? Prescription drugs!
April 18th, 2011
Medical Marijuana Industry Booming
With 15 states as well as the District of Columbia deeming it legal, medical marijuana has become a rising profitable industry in the United States. Medical marijuana has been shown to assist in alleviating chronic pain and hurtful symptoms of diseases such as AIDS or cancer, and patients in ...
March 28th, 2011
Pharmaceutical Prices Continue to Rise
As the country continues to wait on the results of health care reform, prices for popular pharmaceuticals are rising quickly ever as the patents expire on the top-selling medications. Fifteen of the best-selling drugs drugs rose at an incredibly high rate last year at 11.4%. This is the highest ...
March 22nd, 2011
West Coast Preparing for Japan Radiation Scare
With the unfortunate tsunami incident in Japan, Americans are beginning to raise their concerns for radiation levels. The destruction of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant has caused numerous Americans to call for a monitoring of the food and drugs imported from Japan in order to test ...
December 10th, 2010
New Drug approved to fight Obesity
It has been a difficult year for diet drugs. October saw the Food and Drug Administration banning two weight loss-drugs, lorcaserin and Qnexa, due to possible links with cancer and heart problems. However, this week an FDA panel gave the approval for a new drug, Contrave, in the fight against ...
October 29th, 2010
FDA deined approval for a new weight-loss drug: Qnexa
In July, an advisory committee to the FDA voted against approval of the Qnexa, a new weight-loss prescription drug. Qnexa is a combination of two pre-existing drugs: phentermine and topiramate. Concerns have been raised about whether the medication can cause birth defects, heart attack and ...
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