April 17, 2024
(ABC News) – Donna Kruzich was one of at least 64 people in the U.S. who died because of tainted steroids made by a specialty pharmacy in Massachusetts. Nearly 12 years later, the operator of New England Compounding Center is … Read More
April 17, 2024
(Nature) – Wegovy, Ozempic and similar weight-loss drugs have become some of the most popular medications in the world. But legions of people are also quitting them. About two-thirds of those in the United States who started taking a drug … Read More
April 16, 2024
(New York Times) – A Chinese company targeted by members of Congress over potential ties to the Chinese government makes blockbuster drugs for the American market that have been hailed as advances in the treatment of cancers, obesity and debilitating … Read More
April 16, 2024
(Associated Press) – A report released by the Mexican government Friday says the country is facing a dire shortage of fentanyl for medical use, even as Mexican cartels pump out tons of the illicit narcotic. The paradox was reported in … Read More
April 15, 2024
(Los Angeles Times via MSN) – Obesity — like so many diseases — disproportionately affects people in racial and ethnic groups that have been marginalized by the U.S. healthcare system. A class of drugs that succeeds where so many others … Read More
April 15, 2024
(The Atlantic) – Of all the wonder drugs in the history of medicine, insulin may be the closest parallel, in both function and purpose, to this century’s miracle of a metabolic drug: the GLP-1 agonist. Sold under now-familiar brand names … Read More
April 12, 2024
(MedPage Today) – Rapidly expanding support for psychedelic agents in mental health treatment has introduced unique challenges and essential considerations in the design and implementation of informed consent processes, an analysis concluded. (Read More)
April 12, 2024
(New York Times) – The outbreak of dengue fever that has unfolded in Latin America over the past three months is staggering in its scale — a million cases in Brazil in a matter of weeks, a huge spike in … Read More
April 12, 2024
(New York Times) – Doses of cholera vaccine are being given to patients as fast as they are produced and the global stockpile has run completely dry, as deadly outbreaks of the disease continue to spread. This does not shock … Read More
April 11, 2024
(Axios) – With 323 medicines in short supply, U.S. drug shortages have risen to their highest level since the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists began tracking in 2001. Why it matters: This high-water mark should energize efforts in Congress and … Read More
April 10, 2024
(New York Times) – England’s move is part of a broader shift in northern Europe, where health officials have been concerned by soaring demand for adolescent gender treatments in recent years. Many patients also have mental health conditions that make … Read More
April 9, 2024
(Reuters) – A European Medicines Agency committee will this week hold a meeting related to its probe into reports of suicidal thoughts after taking diabetes and weight loss drugs such as Novo Nordisk’s Ozempic, an agenda showed on Monday. The … Read More
April 8, 2024
(STAT News) – Anyone can now walk into a pharmacy in the United States and buy oral contraceptives over the counter without a prescription, thanks to the FDA’s approval of norgestrel (Opill). This change reflects the drug’s safety and the … Read More
April 8, 2024
(STAT News) – Beta blockers are a mainstay in cardiovascular treatment, frequently given to patients after heart attacks. But a new large trial turns that convention on its head, suggesting that the drugs may not in fact help many of … Read More
April 8, 2024
(The Atlantic) – The legalization of cannabis in the United States—the biggest change in policy for an illegal substance since Prohibition ended—has been an unqualified success for approximately no one. True, the drug is widely available for commercial purchase, many … Read More
April 8, 2024
(ABC News) – The U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s accelerated approval program is meant to give patients early access to promising drugs. But how often do these drugs actually improve or extend patients’ lives? In a new study, researchers found … Read More
April 5, 2024
(Axios) – Understanding of psychiatric disorders is catching up to a reality all too familiar to the doctors who treat patients: one-size-fits-all treatments for complex conditions like depression or bipolar disorder are coming up short. Why it matters: As new … Read More
April 5, 2024
(Washington Post) – A group of public health experts and scientists is calling on the Food and Drug Administration to rescind its controversial approval of a DNA test that promises to predict genetic risk of opioid addiction. In a letter … Read More
April 5, 2024
(STAT News) – Prozac prescriptions for dogs are on the rise, veterinarians across the country acknowledge, along with a myriad of cheaper generic mood stabilizers sold for humans but applied to pets’ separation anxiety, socialization fears, biting habits, or other … Read More
April 5, 2024
(CNBC) – CVS Health on Thursday said its drug plans will cover the first over-the-counter birth control pill in the U.S. at no cost for many health plan sponsors, a decision that could open the door for more people to … Read More
April 4, 2024
(New York Times) – In 1817, James Parkinson expressed a hope about the disease that is named after him. He thought that at some point there would be a discovery and “the progress of the disease may be stopped.” Now, … Read More
April 3, 2024
(New York Times) – Anxious ahead of a big job interview? Worried about giving a speech? First date nerves? The solution, some digital start-ups suggest, is a beta blocker, a type of medication that can slow heart rate and lower … Read More
April 3, 2024
(Axios) – Shortages of commonly prescribed drugs for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder have stretched on for nearly 18 months, with no clear end in sight for many Americans who’ve found it difficult if not impossible to get the treatments. Why … Read More
April 3, 2024
(The Atlantic) – Within the next couple of decades, a new generation of contraceptives could hit the American market. One, a pill that blocks certain cells from accessing vitamin A, might be able to limit fertility without flooding the body … Read More
April 1, 2024
(Wall Street Journal) – Behind the blockbuster success of drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy is a less-noticed phenomenon: Some people don’t lose much weight on them. There is wide variation in weight loss on these types of drugs, called GLP-1s. … Read More
