Drugs/Medical Archive
PAGCL – Man-Made or Man Induced?
August 24th, 2009. By LucyC
Post arthroscopic glenohumeral chondrolysis (PAGCL)—ever heard of it? Chances are probably not—unless you have it.
PAGCL is a painful and debilitating condition characterized by the deterioration of cartilage between bones—cartilage is the stuff that prevents bone from grinding on bone. The problem with cartilage is that it doesn’t renew itself when it becomes damaged. There’s no blood flow to cartilage—so it can’t renew itself. So, once damaged, forever damaged.
It turns out that some types of pain medication delivered via a shoulder pain pump for example, are toxic to cartilage, and can cause PAGCL. So the very thing that’s meant to help in fact harms, permanently. Some reports suggest that just a few days worth of exposure can harm the cartilage. Read the rest of this entry »
MRI Breast Cancer Study & MRI Health Risks
August 21st, 2009. By AbiK
The American Cancer Society’s CA: A Cancer Journal for Clinicians just published (8/13/09) the findings from a study done on the use of MRI with early stage breast cancer patients.
Given: MRI health risks have been in the news given contrast agent gadolinium’s association with the potential for NSF (Nephrogenic Systemic Fibrosis).
Given: It’s been in vogue (if breast cancer can ever be) to have an MRI as part of the diagnostic process for breast cancer.
Yasmin and Yaz: 2 New Studies Confirm the Worst
August 20th, 2009. By LucyC
The evidence is mounting—evidence that shows the risk for developing potentially lethal blood clots such as deep vein thrombosis (DVT) in women taking new generation hormonal contraception is much higher than in women taking older generation oral contraceptives.
Two new studies published on the British Medical Journal’s website this month point to a higher incidence of DVT in women taking pills containing desogestrel (e.g., Cyclessa from Organon) and drospirenone (e.g., Yaz from Bayer Healthcare).
In one of the studies, conducted in the Netherlands, the researchers found a 6.3 fold increased risk for venous thrombosis (VT) associated with drospirenone—one of the hormones in Yaz/Yasmin—compared with rates for VT in non-users. That means the risk for VT increases 6 times above that seen in women not taking drospirenone.
Researchers involved in the second study, from Denmark, found a 1.64 increased risk for VT associated with drosperinone.
The researchers from the Netherlands concluded: Read the rest of this entry »
MRI GBCAs – They’re Bad News
August 19th, 2009. By LucyC
If you or someone you know has advanced kidney disease chances are you have undergone an MRI—very likely more than one. As you probably know, in order for physicians to see things on an MRI the person undergoing the imaging procedure may need to be administered what is called a gadolinium-based contrast agent (GBCA). Problem is, the gadolinium-based agents that are used are linked to serious kidney disease—something called nephrogenic systemic fibrosis (NSF), or Nephrogenic Fibrosing Dermopathy (NFD).
The health problems resulting from GBCAs were not widely known until around 2006-2007—and even then the average person undergoing an MRI at the time would likely never have heard of NSF/NFD. But the medical community is more aware of the problems, and the Food and Drug Administration acknowledged that there were 200 reports worldwide of NSF/NFD due to patients exposed to various GBCAs in 2006.
Recently, a group of investigators based at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia reviewed a series of controlled clinical trials that examined the association between GBCAs and NSF. The study was published in the May 2009 Issue of Renal and Urology News.
The results strongly indicate a ‘causal relationship’ between GBCAs and NSF. In fact, the researchers wrote in their paper: Read the rest of this entry »
Should we all just get high on Marijuana…legally?
August 18th, 2009. By AbiK
Not long ago I had posted about the drug Reglan—the drug that has been associated with Tardive Dyskinesia—and the possibility of using marijuana for medicinal purposes to alleviate some of the symptoms of the disorder. There really isn’t much more than ancedotal evidence to support using marijuana for Tardive Dyskinesia–and regardless, as of late July there were only 13 states that have actually legalized the drug.
Just today, as a follow up, I thought I’d check out Urtak.com—a collaborative surveying site—to see what the pulse is on whether folks think marijuana should indeed be legalized.
The Court of Public Opinion has spoken. Well, at least 276 members of the public have answered the question on marijuana legalization over at Urtak. And if you’ve been following the issue in the media, you may not be totally surprised by the results—it is a fairly polarizing issue.
The results… Read the rest of this entry »
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