Pharmacology/Pharmaceutical Industry

The harms of postoperative antibiotic prophylaxis: a teachable moment.

30 Mar, 2022 | 10:36h | UTC

The Harms of Postoperative Antibiotic Prophylaxis: A Teachable Moment – JAMA Internal Medicine (free for a limited period)

 

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Study shows overtreatment of diabetes common in nursing home residents with type 2 diabetes.

30 Mar, 2022 | 10:27h | UTC

Glycemic treatment deintensification practices in nursing home residents with type 2 diabetes – Journal of the American Geriatrics Society

Commentaries:

Overtreatment of T2DM Common Among VA Nursing Home Residents – HealthDay

Diabetes treatment deintensification uncommon in nursing home residents – medwire News

 

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Retrospective Cohort Study: Risks for anaphylaxis with intravenous iron formulations.

30 Mar, 2022 | 10:16h | UTC

Risks for Anaphylaxis With Intravenous Iron Formulations: A Retrospective Cohort Study – Annals of Internal Medicine (link to abstract – $ for full-text)

News Release: Risk of Severe Allergic Reaction Higher with Two Intravenous Iron-Boosting Products – Rutgers University

Commentary: Risks for Anaphylaxis Compared Among IV Iron Products – HealthDay

 

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Systematic Review: Probiotics for treatment of chronic constipation in children.

30 Mar, 2022 | 10:12h | UTC

Probiotics for treatment of chronic constipation in children – Cochrane Library

Summary: Probiotics for treatment of chronic constipation in children – Cochrane Library

 

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Opinion: Global vaccination must be swifter.

29 Mar, 2022 | 10:12h | UTC

Global vaccination must be swifter – Nature

 

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Myocarditis and pericarditis after COVID-19 vaccination: clinical management guidance for healthcare professionals.

29 Mar, 2022 | 10:09h | UTC

Myocarditis and pericarditis after COVID-19 vaccination: clinical management guidance for healthcare professionals – UK Health Security Agency

Related:

Myocarditis following a third Pfizer vaccination dose in military recruits in Israel.

Myocarditis following COVID-19 BNT162b2 vaccination among adolescents in Hong Kong.

[Preprint] Post-marketing active surveillance of myocarditis and pericarditis following vaccination with COVID-19 mRNA vaccines in persons aged 12-39 years in Italy.

Myocarditis after BNT162b2 vaccination in Israeli adolescents.

Myocarditis cases reported after mRNA-Based COVID-19 vaccination in the US from December 2020 to August 2021.

A case-control study showed an increased risk of myocarditis after COVID-19 vaccination with a messenger RNA vaccine compared to an inactivated virus vaccine.

[Preprint] Risk of myocarditis following sequential COVID-19 vaccinations by age and sex.

Risks of myocarditis, pericarditis, and cardiac arrhythmias associated with COVID-19 vaccination vs. SARS-CoV-2 infection.

Case series with 139 adolescents and young adults with suspected myocarditis following mRNA vaccination showed most cases had a mild clinical course and rapid resolution of symptoms.

Heart-inflammation risk from Pfizer COVID vaccine is very low.

Large cohort study with over 2.5 million individuals showed the incidence of myocarditis after the Pfizer vaccine was 2.13 cases per 100,000 persons.

Study with over 5.1 million vaccinated individuals showed the incidence of myocarditis after the receipt of the Pfizer vaccine was low and more common after the second dose in young male recipients.

Large Observational study shows Pfizer Covid vaccine is mostly safe but is associated with increased risk of myocarditis, adenopathy, appendicitis, and herpes zoster.

 

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Meta-analysis of randomized trials: GLP1 receptor agonists increase the risk of gallbladder and biliary diseases (RR, 1.37; 95% CI, 1.23-1.52).

29 Mar, 2022 | 10:02h | UTC

Association of Glucagon-Like Peptide-1 Receptor Agonist Use With Risk of Gallbladder and Biliary Diseases: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis of Randomized Clinical Trials – JAMA Internal Medicine (free for a limited period)

Commentary: GLP-1 Receptor Agonists: How Safe Are They for the Gallbladder?— Link with gallbladder, biliary diseases could be due to weight loss associated with class of drug – MedPage Today (free registration required)

 

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Cohort Study: Preconception paternal use of metformin linked to increased risk of congenital problems in offspring.

29 Mar, 2022 | 10:04h | UTC

Preconception Antidiabetic Drugs in Men and Birth Defects in Offspring: A Nationwide Cohort Study – Annals of Internal Medicine (link to abstract – $ for full-text)

Commentaries:

Paternal metformin use associated with major birth defects if used during period of sperm development – American College of Physicians

Expert reaction to study of birth defects and diabetic men using metformin during sperm development – Science Media Centre

 

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Association of antipsychotic drug exposure in pregnancy with risk of neurodevelopmental disorders: a national birth cohort study.

29 Mar, 2022 | 08:46h | UTC

Association of Antipsychotic Drug Exposure in Pregnancy With Risk of Neurodevelopmental Disorders: A National Birth Cohort Study – JAMA Internal Medicine (free for a limited period)

Commentary: Antipsychotic Use During Pregnancy Generally Not Associated With Neurodevelopmental Risks – Psychiatric News Alert

 

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Review: Short and oral antimicrobial therapy for diabetic foot infection.

29 Mar, 2022 | 08:29h | UTC

Short and oral antimicrobial therapy for diabetic foot infection: a narrative review of current knowledge – Journal of Bone and Joint Infection

 

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Moderna to ask FDA to authorize Covid-19 vaccine in children 6 months to 6 years.

28 Mar, 2022 | 10:01h | UTC

Moderna to ask FDA to authorize Covid-19 vaccine in children 6 months to 6 years – STAT

 

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The prevalence of penicillin allergy labeling ranged from 0.9% to 10.2% across practices in a large pediatric cohort, raising questions regarding the validity of those labels and the unnecessary use of second-line antibiotics that may follow.

28 Mar, 2022 | 09:48h | UTC

Factors Associated With Penicillin Allergy Labels in Electronic Health Records of Children in 2 Large US Pediatric Primary Care Networks – JAMA Network Open

Related: A pharmacist-led penicillin allergy assessment program can delabel many “penicillin allergic” patients through allergy histories and penicillin skin testing. The program was associated with reduced use of high Clostridioides difficile infection–risk antibiotics.

M-A: Most patients with allergy to Penicillin can be given Cefazolin

Systematic review: Safety and efficacy of de-labelling penicillin allergy in adults using direct oral challenge

Penicillin allergy labels increase second-line broad-spectrum antibiotic prescribing for pediatric respiratory tract infections

Podcast: A Clinical Pharmacologist’s Perspective on Penicillin Allergy

Study: Development and Validation of a Penicillin Allergy Clinical Decision Rule

Consensus Recommendations: Management of a Surgical Patient with a Label of Penicillin Allergy

Practical Guide for Pharmacists to Successfully Implement Penicillin Allergy Skin Testing

NICE: Double Check Patients with ‘Penicillin Allergy’ to Avoid Increased MRSA Risk

Cohort Study: Risk of Meticillin Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus and Clostridium Difficile in Patients with a Documented Penicillin Allergy

 

Commentary on Twitter

In this cohort study of more than 330,000 children, less than 5% were labeled with penicillin allergy with wide variation across practices, with 8% of those labeled despite not receiving any penicillin prescription. https://t.co/kvXcm1RKRd

— JAMA Network Open (@JAMANetworkOpen) March 15, 2022

 

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Cohort study: Long-term treatment with clozapine is associated with increased risk of hematological malignancies.

28 Mar, 2022 | 08:43h | UTC

Long-term treatment with clozapine and other antipsychotic drugs and the risk of haematological malignancies in people with schizophrenia: a nationwide case-control and cohort study in Finland – The Lancet Psychiatry (link to abstract – $ for full-text)

 

Commentary on Twitter

Clozapine associated with an increased risk of haematological malignancies with a dose-response effect.

More deaths than from agranulocytosis, but absolute risk small compared to overall mortality benefit with clozapine.https://t.co/BK3P7GgPiv
@TheLancetPsych

— Jonathan Rogers (@drjprogers) March 24, 2022

 

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A practical guide to implementing SMART in asthma management.

28 Mar, 2022 | 08:42h | UTC

A Practical Guide to Implementing SMART in Asthma Management – The Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology

 

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M-A: Comparative effectiveness of statins on non-HDL cholesterol in people with diabetes and at risk of cardiovascular disease.

25 Mar, 2022 | 10:01h | UTC

Comparative effectiveness of statins on non-high density lipoprotein cholesterol in people with diabetes and at risk of cardiovascular disease: systematic review and network meta-analysis – The BMJ

News Release: Best statins for reducing cardiovascular risk in people with diabetes found – University of Manchester

 

Commentary on Twitter

This network meta-analysis indicated that rosuvastatin, at moderate and high intensity doses, and simvastatin and atorvastatin, at high intensity doses, were most effective at moderately reducing levels of non-HDL-C in patients with diabeteshttps://t.co/NwUf4sX5KA

— The BMJ (@bmj_latest) March 24, 2022

 

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[Preprint] Risk of death following SARS-CoV-2 infection or COVID-19 vaccination in young people in England: a self-controlled case series study.

25 Mar, 2022 | 09:47h | UTC

Risk of death following SARS-CoV-2 infection or COVID-19 vaccination in young people in England: a self-controlled case series study – medRxiv

 

Commentary on Twitter

Pleased to share our study showing that there is no evidence of an increased risk of death in young people after COVID-19 vaccination in England

Great collaboration with @kamleshkhunti @amibanerjee1 and others not on twitter!https://t.co/EV4xmDWeyB pic.twitter.com/VQy2PtCxeC

— Vahé Nafilyan (@Vnafilyan) March 24, 2022

 

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[Preprint] RCT: Vitamin D supplements did not prevent Covid-19 or other acute respiratory infections.

25 Mar, 2022 | 09:49h | UTC

Vitamin D Supplements for Prevention of Covid-19 or other Acute Respiratory Infections: a Phase 3 Randomized Controlled Trial (CORONAVIT) – medRxiv

Related:

M-A: Low vitamin D levels do not aggravate COVID-19 risk or death, and vitamin D supplementation does not improve outcomes in hospitalized patients with COVID-19.

In a Mendelian randomization study, researchers found no genetic evidence to support an association between Vitamin D levels and COVID-19 susceptibility, severity, or hospitalization.

Living systematic review: The evidence is insufficient to determine the benefits and harms of vitamin D supplementation as a treatment of COVID‐19.

RCT: Vitamin D3 does not improve outcomes in hospitalized patients with moderate to severe COVID-19

 

Commentary on Twitter (thread – click for more)

https://twitter.com/KarlPfleger/status/1506871284214337543

 

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RCT: In patients with chronic migraine and overuse of symptomatic medications, migraine preventive therapy without switching or limiting the frequency of the overused medication was non-inferior to switching to a different symptomatic medication with a maximum limit of two treatment days/week.

25 Mar, 2022 | 08:44h | UTC

Patient-Centered Treatment of Chronic Migraine With Medication Overuse: A Prospective, Randomized, Pragmatic Clinical Trial – Neurology (link to abstract – $ for full-text)

 

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Observational study suggests antidopaminergic antiemetics (domperidone, metopimazine, and metoclopramide) are associated with increased stroke risk.

24 Mar, 2022 | 09:51h | UTC

Risk of first ischaemic stroke and use of antidopaminergic antiemetics: nationwide case-time-control study – The BMJ

News Release: Widely used nausea drugs linked to heightened risk of stroke – BMJ

 

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RCT: Safety and efficacy of a third dose of the Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine during the Delta wave.

24 Mar, 2022 | 09:46h | UTC

Safety and Efficacy of a Third Dose of BNT162b2 Covid-19 Vaccine – New England Journal of Medicine

 

Commentary on Twitter

A third dose of the BNT162b2 vaccine administered a median of 10.8 months after the second dose provided 95.3% efficacy against Covid-19 as compared with two doses. #COVID19 #IDTwitter https://t.co/IeHOgVhU8a pic.twitter.com/wValXSdyHX

— NEJM (@NEJM) March 23, 2022

 

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RCT: Multivitamins not beneficial for the prevention of cancer.

24 Mar, 2022 | 08:49h | UTC

Multivitamins in the prevention of cancer and cardiovascular disease: The COSMOS randomized clinical trial – American Journal of Clinical Nutrition

Commentary: Daily Multivitamin Does Not Cut Cancer Incidence in Older Adults – HealthDay

Related: USPSTF Draft Statement: Insufficient evidence to recommend multivitamin supplements for the prevention of CVD or cancer. The statement also recommends against the use of beta-carotene (increases risk of CVD mortality and lung cancer) or vitamin E (clear evidence of no benefit)

 

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WHO releases clinical management guidelines for influenza.

23 Mar, 2022 | 10:41h | UTC

News Release: WHO releases clinical management guidelines for influenza – World Health Organization

Original Report: Guidelines for the clinical management of severe illness from influenza virus infections – World Health Organization

 

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New WHO guidelines on the management of tuberculosis in children and adolescents.

22 Mar, 2022 | 09:52h | UTC

WHO consolidated guidelines on tuberculosis Module 5: Management of tuberculosis in children and adolescents – World Health Organization

Commentary: New Children’s TB Guidelines a ‘Game-Changer’ With Non-Invasive Tests, Shortened Treatments – Health Policy Watch

Related: RCT: In children with nonsevere, drug-susceptible tuberculosis, treatment for 4 months is noninferior to treatment for 6 months.

 

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Preventing and treating the common cold: what’s the evidence?

22 Mar, 2022 | 08:56h | UTC

Preventing and treating the common cold: what’s the evidence? – Evidently Cochrane

 

Commentary on Twitter

https://twitter.com/CochraneUK/status/1505978560078659587

 

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Phase 2 RCT: Repeated intravenous cardiosphere-derived cell therapy in late-stage Duchenne muscular dystrophy.

22 Mar, 2022 | 07:59h | UTC

Repeated intravenous cardiosphere-derived cell therapy in late-stage Duchenne muscular dystrophy (HOPE-2): a multicentre, randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled, phase 2 trial – The Lancet

Commentary: Cellular therapy improves signs and symptoms of Duchenne muscular dystrophy – University of California – Davis Health

 

Commentary on Twitter

In patients with late-stage Duchenne muscular dystrophy, CAP-1002 cell therapy appears safe & effective in reducing deterioration of upper limb & cardiac function, trial suggests. Longer-term extension studies needed.

Explore full findings: https://t.co/bCLtsbuJH3 pic.twitter.com/h7vareAMC7

— The Lancet (@TheLancet) March 21, 2022

 

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