PHARM.D

New Once-Daily LABA Improves Lung Function in COPD   After a month of using vilanterol, an investigational long-acting beta-2-agonist (LABA) that's inhaled once a day, patients with moderate to severe chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) had significant improvements in forced expiratory volume in 1 second (FEV1). "The 25 mcg and 50 mcg doses of vilanterol appear to offer the greatest clinical benefit without any safety concerns," the authors reported online January 12 in Chest. Dr. Nicola A. Hanania, with Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas, and colleagues note that once-daily dosing of a LABA could improve patient compliance. To assess dose response, efficacy and safety, the researchers enrolled 602 patients with moderate-severe disease and randomly assigned them to 3.0, 6.5, 12.5, 25, or 50 mcg vilanterol, or placebo, inhaled once daily for 28 days. The main outcome measure was the change in trough FEV1 from baseline to the end of the study....

Glucagon-Like Peptide-1 Receptor Agonists Promote Weight Loss  According to the World Health Organisation Fact Sheet on obesity and overweight, 1.5 billion adults are overweight, and 500 million adults are obese. Glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1), which is secreted from the intestine, enhances endogenous insulin secretion after meal ingestion, inhibits glucagon secretion, suppresses food intake, and suppresses appetite. This systematic review and meta-analysis by Visboll and colleagues assesses the effects of treatment with GLP-1 receptor (GLP-1R) agonists in overweight or obese adults with or without type 2 diabetes mellitus. Patients treated with GLP-1R agonists exhibited greater weight loss and improved blood pressure and cholesterol levels irrespective of the presence of type 2 diabetes, according to the findings of a systematic review and meta-analysis. The authors menti...

PHARM.D  (PB) THERAPEUTICS SYLLABUS

Black Tea Lowers Blood Pressure in Small Trial  Drinking black tea appears to reduce the risk of developing high blood pressure, research shows [1]. Three daily cups, which provided approximately 400 mg/day of polyphenols, reduced systolic and diastolic blood pressure between 2 to 3 mm Hg, according to researchers. "A large proportion of the general population has blood pressure within the range included in this trial, making results of the trial applicable to individuals at increased risk of hypertension," write Dr Jonathan Hodgson (University of Western Australia, Perth) and colleagues in a research letter published in the January 23, 2012 issue of the Archives of Internal Medicine . Black tea is a common source of flavonoids, which have been suggested to contribute to vascular health. The researchers point out that they have shown that flavonoids augment nitric-oxide status and reduce plasma concentration of endothelin-1, both of which could contribute to red...

Japan Approves New Device for Eye Surgery The Stellaris Procedural Choice (PC) Vision Enhancement System , which facilitates both vitreoretinal and cataract surgery in a single system, has been approved in Japan, according to a written release from the manufacturer Bausch and Lomb Japan and Topcon Medical Japan will partner to jointly launch their ophthalmic surgical products in Japan. According to Bausch and Lomb, vitreoretinal surgery is performed on about 100,000 patients each year in that country for conditions such as diabetic retinopathy and retinal detachment, which can cause blindness if untreated. Bausch and Lomb announced the introduction of the new system to retinal surgeons in the United States in August 2010. The device was previously introduced to cataract surgeons in 2007. The device can be used for cataract surgery, vitreoretinal surgery, or a combination of both procedures. Because cataract and vitreoretinal surgeries are also often performed simultaneous...

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