Current Drug Safety - Volume 10, Issue 2, 2015

Restless leg syndrome (RLS) is a common disorder, frequently of unclear origin, which is often associated with significant distress. There are a few case reports of atypical antipsychotic agents (AAP) causing RLS. The pathophysiological mechanisms resulting in emergence of these movements suggest central dopaminergic dysfunction. Dopamine agonists and L-dopa reduce the symptoms of RLS, and some agents that block the Read More

Patent ductus arteriosus (PDA) is the most common cardiac condition in preterm infants. The most commonly used drugs for this purpose are cyclooxygenase inhibitors, mainly indomethacin and ibuprofen, which block the conversion of arachidonic acid to prostaglandins. On the other hand, several adverse effects have been reported with such medications, including peripheral vasoconstriction, gastrointestinal bleeding Read More

Background: In 2005, the FDA approved the Roche AmpliChip™ for clinical application. The AmpliChip is a microarray chip that has the capability to play an important role in clinical pharmacogenetics. Objective: Because of the possible influence the AmpliChip may have on patient medication management, the purpose of the review is to address the available evidence for the AmpliChip’s overall performance at three key levels Read More

Background: The efficacy of clozapine for the treatment of schizophrenia has been demonstrated. However, a range of adverse events have been associated with its use. To date, there remains a paucity of data regarding the prevalence of clozapine-induced cardiovascular (CV) and parameters associated with the development of metabolic syndrome, alongside associated risk factors for their development. Methods: An observati Read More

Objective: Preventive therapy in migraine must be started with frequent or disabling headaches in children, while, no drugs have been approved for migraine preventive therapy of them up to now. The aim of the present research was to investigate safety and efficacy of melatonin in pediatric migraine prophylaxis. Methods: In a quasi- experimental study, monthly frequency, severity and duration of headache, migraine disabilit Read More

Background: Adverse drug reaction (ADR) is a global drug therapy problem. It has been rated as one of the top leading causes of morbidity and mortality. In Nigeria, not much is known about ADRs especially with the existing weak post marketing surveillance for monitoring drug use, and its effect on the population. Objectives: The study is aimed at determining the incidence of ADRs, presentations of ADRs, classes of drugs th Read More

Purpose: To report our results concerning the safety and efficacy of repeated sustainedrelease dexamethasone 0.7 mg implants (Ozurdex, Allergan, Inc., Irvine, CA) in patients with persistent Macular Edema (ME) due to Retinal Vein Occlusion (RVO) previously treated with anti- VEGF injections. Patients and Methods: Ten patients (5 males and 5 females/ 5 with CRVO and 5 with BRVO), all previously treated with at least 3 consecu Read More

Purpose: This study evaluated the effects of concomitant pravastatin and paroxetine use on the incidence of Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus (T2DM). Methods: A new-user retrospective cohort design was employed using data selected from US health insurance claims databases (OptumInsight and MarketScan) between July 1, 2002, and December 31, 2009. Patients included were of age ≥18; newly prescribed pravastatin or paroxet Read More

In June, 2012 the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) developed a “blueprint” for prescriber education as a means of directing Certified Medical Education (CME) activities that included content which would meet the regulatory requirements of the class-wide, longacting/ extended-release (LA-ER) opioid Risk Evaluation Mitigation Strategies (REMS). Within the blueprint is the suggested adoption of Patient-P Read More

In clinical practice, adherence to drugs and their safety may differ from randomised controlled trial settings. This study was undertaken to investigate the adherence to dabigatran, a direct thrombin inhibitor, and its safety in a real-world setting. We studied a prospective cohort of 114 elderly consecutive patients with non valvular atrial fibrillation (AF) who were treated with dabigatran 150 mg twice-daily (N=39) or 110 Read More

Objective: To review the available evidence concerning the relationship between the exposure to metronidazole during pregnancy and the risk of preterm delivery and birth defects. Methods: Studies investigating the association between gestational use of oral metronidazole on human subjects and the risk of preterm birth or/and birth defects were systematically retrieved from MEDLINE and EMBASE databases. We sele Read More

Posterior reversible encephalopathy syndrome (PRES) is an acute central nervous system disorder characterized by reversible brain vasogenic edema. We report here a new case of a nine-year-old boy with B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (B-ALL) who developed PRES secondary to induction chemotherapy including dexamethasone (dexamethasone®), vincristine (oncovin®), daunorubicin (adriblastine®) and intrath Read More

Introduction: Pregabalin is a gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) analogue approved for the treatment of neuropathic pain, partial seizure and generalized anxiety disorder. As a GABA analogue, there is a raising concern regarding the abuse potential of this drug. Case: We present a first case of pregabalin dependence in a 26-year-old woman without a previous history of illicit drug abuse. Discussion: Physician should be a Read More

Stevens-Johnson syndrome (SJS) is an uncommon life-threatening skin disease, generally induced by drugs. Extracutaneous manifestations of the syndrome can occur, and may involve the conjunctiva, buccal mucosa, gastrointestinal and genitourinary tracts. Cholestatic hepatitis has been rarely described in SJS. A 29-year-old woman was admitted with generalized cutaneous eruption. A self-medication with paracetamol ha Read More

Sulindac is a long-acting nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) widely used for the management of osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, ankylosing sponydlitis, and acute gouty arthritis. Reports of sulindac toxicity in the literature are rare. We report the case of a 22-year old male with a history of bipolar disorder who was brought to the emergency department after ingesting approximately 15 g of sulindac in a suicide a Read More