Drugs

Ibuprofen Kills Thousands Each Year, So What Is The Alternative?

Monday, June 4th 2012 A recent Reuters’ article opened with the following stunning sentence: “Long-term high-dose use of painkillers such as ibuprofen or diclofenac is ‘equally hazardous’ in terms of heart attack risk as use of the drug Vioxx, which was withdrawn due to its potential dangers, researchers said.”   The 2004 Vioxx recall, as […]

Cardiopulmonary Arrest Following Cervical Epidural Injection

Cardiopulmonary Arrest Following Cervical Epidural Injection Case Report Bradley Stauber, BS, Lin Ma, MD, and Reza Nazari, MD Pain Physician March/April 2012 – Vol 15 Issue 2 Epidural steroid injection is a common treatment for the management of pain in a wide variety of patients. It is generally well tolerated and perceived to have few […]

Aspirin, Nonsteroidal Anti-inflammatory Drug Use, and Risk for Crohn Disease and Ulcerative Colitis

Aspirin, Nonsteroidal Anti-inflammatory Drug Use, and Risk for Crohn Disease and Ulcerative Colitis: A Cohort Study Ashwin N. Ananthakrishnan, MD, MPH 6 March 2012, Vol 156, No. 5 Ann Intern Med. 2012;156(5):350-359. doi:10.7326/0003-4819-156-5-201203060-00007 Background: Aspirin and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) are anti-inflammatory but have been linked in some studies to Crohn disease (CD) and ulcerative […]

Use of Sleeping Pills Associated With Greater Death Risk

Use of Sleeping Pills Associated With Greater Death Risk BY BRIDGET M. KUEHN on FEBRUARY 28, 2012 From news@JAMA:  http://newsatjama.jama.com/2012/02/28/use-of-sleeping-pills-associated-with-greater-death-risk/ Patients taking prescription sleeping pills, even if they received only a short-term supply, have a more than 3 times greater risk of dying over a few years than a matched group of patients not taking […]

Drugs for relief of pain in patients with sciatica

Systematic review and meta-analysis Rafael Zambelli Pinto, PhD student BMJ 2012; 344 doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/bmj.e497 (Published 13 February 2012) Cite this as: BMJ 2012;344:e497 Abstract Objective To investigate the efficacy and tolerability of analgesic and adjuvant pain drugs typically administered in primary care for the management of patients with sciatica. Design Systematic review. Data source International […]

Drugs for relief of pain in patients with sciatica

Systematic review and meta-analysis BMJ 2012; 344 doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/bmj.e497 (Published 13 February 2012) Cite this as: BMJ 2012;344:e497 Sciatica is considered to be a prognostic indicator of poor outcome among patients with low back pain. Furthermore a substantial proportion continuing to have persistent pain for two years or longer. General practitioners often prescribe pain-relieving drugs […]

Antibiotics Provide No Clinically Important Benefit in Mild to Moderate Acute Sinusitis

Roderick P Venekamp Evid Based Med. 2012;17(6):e16 Introduction Commentary on: Smith SR, Montgomery LG, Williams JW Jr. Treatment of mild to moderate sinusitis. Arch Intern Med2012;172:510–3. Context Acute rhinosinusitis (ARS) is a common reason for patients to visit a general practitioner (GP).[1,2] In general practice, diagnosing ARS is based on clinical signs and symptoms such […]

Epidural Injections for Lumbar Discs

The Study: A randomized, controlled, double-blind trial of fluoroscopic caudal epidural injections in the treatment of lumbar disc herniation and radiculitis The Facts: a. The authors evaluated the effectiveness of the procedure of fluoroscopically directed caudal epidural injections for chronic low back/lower extremity pain. This was done for patients who suffered from disc herniation and […]

NSAIDs May Up Women’s Risk of Crohn’s Disease

Published: Nov 1, 2011 By Joyce Frieden , News Editor, MedPage Today Action Points Note that this study was published as an abstract and presented at a conference. These data and conclusions should be considered to be preliminary until published in a peer-reviewed journal. Explain that women who use nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs for 15 or […]

How Effective and Save Are Systemic Steroids for Acute Low Back Pain

Mark Johnson, D.O. Evidence-Based Answers From The Family Physicians Inquires Network Clinical Inquires Short courses of systemic steroids are likely safe, but they are ineffective. A single dose of intramuscular (IM) or intravenous (FV) methylprednisolone doesn’t improve long-term pain scores in patients with low back pain and sciatica and produces conflicting effects on furiction. Oral prednisone (9-day taper) doesn’t improve pain or […]

A systematic review on the effectiveness of pharmacological interventions for chronic non-specific low-back pain

T. Kuijpers European Spine Journal January 2011, Volume 20, Issue 1, pp 40-50 First online: 31 July 2010 Abstract The objective of this review was to determine the effectiveness of pharmacological interventions [i.e., non-steroid anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), muscle relaxants, antidepressants, and opioids] for non-specific chronic low-back pain (LBP). Existing Cochrane reviews for the four interventions […]

Metformin-induced Vitamin B12 Deficiency Presenting as a Peripheral Neuropathy

David S.H. Bell, MD Disclosures South Med J. 2010;103(3):265-267. ABSTRACT AND INTRODUCTION Abstract Chronic metformin use results in vitamin B12 deficiency in 30% of patients. Exhaustion of vitamin B12 stores usually occurs after twelve to fifteen years of absolute vitamin B12 deficiency. Metformin has been available in the United States for approximately fifteen years. Vitamin B12 […]

Red Yeast Rice Versus Pravastatin in Patients Wtih Previous Statin Intolerance

Tolerability of Red Yeast Rice (2,400 mg Twice Daily) Versus Pravastatin (20 mg Twice Daily) in Patients With Previous Statin Intolerance Steven C. Halbert, MD The American Journal of Cardiology Volume 105, Issue 2, 15 January 2010, Pages 198–204 Currently, no consensus has been reached regarding the management of hyperlipidemia in patients who develop statin-associated […]

NSAIDs and Manipulation Ineffective for Acute Low Back Pain

Best Evidence Review Assessment of Diclofenac or Spinal Manipulative Therapy, or Both, in Addition to Recommended First-line Treatment for Acute Low Back Pain: A Randomized Controlled Trial Hancock MJ, Maher GC, Latimer J, et al Lancet. 2007;370:1638-1643 Full Story PubMed Reference Journal Reference Abstract Previous recommendations have noted that nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) and spinal […]

Acetaminophen Is Leading Cause of Acute Liver Failure

by Neil Osterweil, Senior Associate Editor, MedPage Today November 30, 2005 SEATTLE, Nov. 30 – Liver toxicity from acetaminophen poisoning is by far the most common cause of acute liver failure in the United States, researchers reported. Users of the popular painkiller who are most at risk include those with depression, chronic pain, alcohol/narcotic use, […]

Statins and risk of polyneuropathy

Press Release American Academy of Neurology Statin Drugs May Increase Risk of Peripheral Neuropathy May 13, 2002 St. Paul, Minn. – Statin drugs can increase the risk of developing peripheral neuropathy, according to a study published in the May 14 issue of Neurology, the scientific journal of the American Academy of Neurology. Peripheral neuropathy results […]

A risk assessment of cervical manipulation vs. NSAIDs for the treatment of neck pain

Dabbs V, Lauretti WJ. J Manipulative Physiol Ther. 1995 Oct;18(8):530-6. Abstract OBJECTIVE: We reviewed the literature to evaluate the risk of serious injury or death resulting from cervical manipulation and to assess the evidence that cervical manipulation is an effective treatment for mechanical neck pain. We also reviewed the literature to assess the risks and […]

A risk assessment of cervical manipulation vs. NSAIDs for the treatment of neck pain

J Manipulative Physiol Ther. 1995 Oct;18(8):530-6. Dabbs V, Lauretti WJ. Abstract OBJECTIVE: We reviewed the literature to evaluate the risk of serious injury or death resulting from cervical manipulation and to assess the evidence that cervical manipulation is an effective treatment for mechanical neck pain. We also reviewed the literature to assess the risks and […]