Drug-induced myopathies may present in varying degrees of severity from mild muscle weakness to rhabdomyolysis with acute renal failure. Drugs may cause myopathic symptoms by directly affecting a muscle organelle, inducing immunological or inflammatory myopathy, altering systemic functions leading to electrolyte disturbances or via nutritional deprivation, and this in turn affects muscle function. Many toxic myopathies are reversible, thus prompt detection of the offending agent is essential. These are some common drugs implicated in this condition
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Tagged as:
Antirheumatic,
drugs,
Glucocorticoids,
muscle weakness,
myopathies,
myopathy,
nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors,
renal failure,
RGH E-bulletin,
rhabdomyolysis,
Zidovudine
At the end of healthy weight week and when New Year resolutions are kicking in, it is timely to review the safety of the three scheduled medications available in Australia with an indication for obesity. It should be noted that with all medications (orlistat, phentermine and sibutramine), lifestyle changes (such as increasing physical activity and reducing calorie intake) remain the cornerstone of management. None of these medications should be used routinely by patients with a Body Mass Index (BMI) of less than 30 (or 25 to 27 in special circumstances). In addition, phentermine is indicated for short term use only.
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Tagged as:
management,
obesity,
orlistat,
phentermine,
RGH E-bulletin,
sibutramine
Lately I seem to have become a bit of a file linker and server. But many of the smaller specialised newsletters I find worthwhile and wish to share either don’t have a home on the web or are only put up quite some time later. The Victorian Residential Aged Care Coronial Communique is a case in point.
Another specialised newsletter is the HAI Africa Practical Pharmacy Newsletter. Again the current edition is not on the web. Previous editions can be found here. Click on the picture to download the current issue 7MB)
click on picture for newsletter
This newsletter is designed to help train indigenous workers in Africa about all things pharmacy. The current edition focuses on the basic building block of logistics. Stock Control.
It covers everything from ordering to stock management and expired drug disposal. In remote Australia we can receive medications regularly by plane and no cost but many of these principles we still use in our clinics.
Tagged as:
HAI,
HAI Africa,
logistics,
medicines,
pharmacy,
Practical Pharmacy,
stock control
In buses with an engine in the front the engine is usually removed from underneath.
So what do you do if the engine needs replacing but you have nothing to lift the bus up on.
Well it hardly rains out here anyway.
Tagged as:
bus,
convertible,
wreck
