Double-blind study tests heart-rhythm drugs (USA)

In the next three years, about 400 people on the brink of death will be part of a study for which they did not volunteer. In Clackamas and Washington counties in Oregon, and Clark County in Washington state, paramedics responding to unconscious people in cardiac arrest will administer CPR, then shock with a defibrillator. That's standard procedure, but if that doesn't work, a paramedic will pull open a mystery packet of unlabeled syringes for injection. Inside will be either one of two heart-rhythm medications, or a simple saline solution - saltwater. Neither paramedics nor doctors will be told what the syringes contained. Researchers later will use bar codes on the syringe to see if survival rates differ between them

Drug market for COPD will increase from $8.3 billion in 2010 to more than $13.4 billion in 2020

Decision Resources, a research and advisory firms for pharmaceutical and healthcare issues, finds that, owing to an expanding aging population, increases in drug treatment and the uptake of premium priced combinations, the drug market for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) will increase from approximately $8.3 billion in 2010 to more than $13.4 billion in 2020 in the United States, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, the United Kingdom and Japan. The Pharmacor advisory service entitled Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease, forecasts that the COPD drug-treated population will expand from approximately 19 million patients in 2010 to nearly 25 million patients in 2020 in the world's major pharmaceutical markets. Uptake of novel long-acting beta2 agonist/long-acting muscarinic antagonist (LABA/LAMA) fixed-dose combinations, including Boehringer Ingelheim’s olodaterol/tiotropium, will also drive market growth, given that they will likely be more expensive than single-agent bronchodilators

Expensive new blood pressure meds no better than generics

"Expensive brand-name medications to lower blood pressure are no better at preventing cardiovascular disease than older, generic diuretics, according to new long-term data from a landmark study. Paul Whelton, MB, MD, MSc, reported the results on Aug. 13 at the plenary session of the China Heart Congress and International Heart Forum in Beijing. Whelton is president and CEO of Loyola University Health System and chairman of the Antihypertensive and Lipid-Lowering Treatment to Prevent Heat Attack Trial (ALLHAT), which has examined the comparative value of different blood pressure-lowering medications. More than 33,000 patients with high blood pressure were randomly assigned to take either a diuretic (chlorthalidone) or one of two newer drugs, a calcium channel blocker (amlodipine) or an ACE inhibitor (lisinopril)"

Cancer link to common heart drugs

"A class of drugs commonly used to treat heart problems has been linked with a "modestly" increased risk of cancer. Analysis of published data from all trials of angiotensin-receptor blockers (ARBs) found one extra case of cancer for every 105 patients treated. The US researchers said the evidence from nine trials should prompt drug regulators to investigate. But they advised people not to stop taking the drugs, but to see their doctors if concerned. The results are published in The Lancet Oncology. ARBs are mainly prescribed for conditions such as high blood pressure and heart failure. They are used by millions of people worldwide" - BBC

Nearly two-thirds of seniors using five or more types of prescription drugs (Canada)

Almost two-thirds (62%) of Canadians age 65 and older living in the community in six provinces are using five or more classes of prescription drugs, according to a study released today by the Canadian Institute for Health Information. The study, Drug Use Among Seniors on Public Drug Programs in Canada, 2002 to 2008, examined public drug claims for more than one million Canadian seniors in Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island. The study found that in 2008, slightly more than one in five (21%) of these seniors were using 10 or more types of prescription drugs, and just more than 1 in 20 (6%) were using 15 or more different classes of drugs. "Public-sector spending on prescribed drugs in Canada reached an estimated $11.4 billion in 2009, and we know that seniors account for a large portion of these expenditures," says Jean-Marie Berthelot, Vice President, Programs, CIHI. "With the aging of Canada's population, it is important to understand which drugs are being used most often by seniors and which account for the highest proportions of public drug program expenditure. This information helps to inform decisions about the future planning and delivery of public drug programs." Older seniors were more likely to be multiple-drug users, with about one-third (29%) of seniors age 85 and older submitting claims for 10 or more types of drugs in 2008, compared to fewer than one in five (17%) seniors age 65 to 74

Older patients with 1 type of heart failure may receive little or no benefit from drugs

People over 80 years of age suffering from a certain type of heart failure do not appear to benefit from most commonly prescribed heart medications, according to a study conducted at the Cedars-Sinai Heart Institute and published in the March 15 issue of The American Journal of Cardiology - Physorg.com

UC Davis research shows that newly discovered drug reduces heart enlargement

"Researchers at the University of California, Davis have discovered that a prototype drug reduces heart enlargement, one of the most common causes of heart failure. Heart failure, which occurs when the heart can't pump enough blood throughout the body, affects 5 million people in the United States. The condition contributes to 300,000 deaths each year. The research in the laboratories of cardiologist and cell biologist Nipavan Chiamvimonvat, Department of Cardiovascular Medicine, UC Davis School of Medicine, and entomologist Bruce Hammock, Department of Entomology, showed that the new class of drugs reduces heart swelling in rat models with heart failure. 'This holds promise to treat heart failure and other cardiovascular as well as kidney problems,' said nephrology professor Robert Weiss, Department of Internal Medicine" - Science Centric

More children and working-age Americans go without prescribed drugs because of cost

"The proportion of children and working-age Americans who went without a prescription drug because of cost concerns jumped to one in seven in 2007, up from one in 10 in 2003, according to a national study released by the Center for Studying Health System Change (HSC) and funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation"

Brand-name drugs no better than generics: study

"There is no evidence that brand-name drugs given to treat heart and other cardiovascular conditions work any better than their cheaper generic counterparts, U.S. researchers said on Tuesday. The findings run counter to the perception by some doctors and patients that pricier brand-name drugs are clinically superior, said Dr. Aaron Kesselheim of Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School in Boston, who led the study. Kesselheim and colleagues combined the results of 30 studies done since 1984 comparing nine sub-classes of cardiovascular drugs to generic counterparts. The brand-name drugs did not offer any advantage for patients' clinical outcomes in those studies, they wrote in the Journal of the American Medical Association. - Reuters

Merck reaffirms cardiovascular research commitment

"Merck & Co., Inc. has reaffirmed its commitment to discovering and developing novel treatments for a broad range of cardiovascular disorders, including atherosclerosis, hypertension, heart failure and metabolic syndrome. This year marks the 50th anniversary of the launch of the Company's first major medicine for cardiovascular disease" - Merck

Faster medication = fewer heart attacks, according to new study

"Patients who received urgently needed medication immediately after artery-opening surgery had fewer heart attacks and rehospitalizations following their surgeries, according to a new study published today in the New England Journal of Medicine. Study author Cynthia A. Jackevicius, PharmD, Western University of Health Sciences Associate Professor for Pharmacy Practice and Administration, said the study found that adopting less restrictive health insurance policies for clopidogrel (trade name: Plavix) resulted in improved cardiovascular outcomes. Clopidogrel helps prevent blood clots" - redOrbit

New-generation drugs have several side effects

"Almost a fourth of new-generation biological drugs produce serious side effects that lead to safety warnings soon after they go on the market, according to a new study. Researchers found that most of the warnings came within five years after these biologicals won government approval in the United States and Europe between 1995 and 2007. Arthritis drugs Humira and Remicade, cancer drugs Rituxan and Erbitux, and the heart failure drug Natrecor were among those under scrutiny in the new report. The unprecedented findings may come as a surprise to doctors who may have assumed that these biological treatments carried fewer risks than traditional chemical-based drugs" - redOrbit/JAMA

Younger doctors more likely to prescribe meds

"Younger doctors are more likely to prescribe potentially lifesaving medications to people who have recently suffered heart attacks than their more experienced peers, a study by Canadian researchers has found. The findings are being published today in the Canadian Medical Association Journal. Researchers conducted a detailed examination of heart-attack patients aged 65 and older in Ontario who were released from hospital in 2005 and 2006, taking the individual's hospital, physician and community into account. They determined that patients who saw doctors with 29 years or more of experience were less likely to be prescribed potentially life-saving medications than those who saw doctors with less than 14 years of experience." - Globe and Mail

US FDA creates web page with drug safety information for patients, health care professionals

Consumers and health care professionals can now go to a single page on the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's Web site to find a wide variety of safety information about prescription drugs. The Web page provides links to information in these categories:

* Drug labeling, including patient labeling, professional labeling, and patient package inserts;
* Drugs that have a Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategy (REMS) to ensure that their benefits outweigh their risks;
* A searchable database of postmarket studies that are required from, or agreed to by, drug companies to provide the FDA with additional information about a drug's safety, efficacy, or optimal use;
* Clinicaltrials.gov, a searchable database of clinical trials, including information about each trial's purpose, who may participate, locations, and useful phone numbers;
* Drug-specific safety information, including safety sheets with the latest information about the drug as well as related FDA press announcements, fact sheets, and drug safety podcasts;
* Quarterly reports that list certain drugs that are being evaluated for potential safety issues, based on a review of information in the FDA's Adverse Event Reporting System (AERS);
* Warning Letters, Import Alerts, Recalls, Market Withdrawals, and Safety Alerts;
* Regulations and guidance documents;
* Consumer information about using medications safely and disposing of unused medicines;
* Instructions how to report problems to the FDA through its MedWatch program;
* Consumer articles on drug safety; and
* The FDA's response to the Institute of Medicine's 2006 report on the future of drug safety

Pfizer shifts focus to cancer and biotech drugs

"Pfizer Inc. is shifting its research focus to diseases that have high potential for big profits and for treatment improvements, such as cancer and Alzheimer's disease. The world's biggest drugmaker also is ending new research on conditions from obesity to heart disease, but research on drugs already in late-stage human testing will continue, spokeswoman Liz Power said Tuesday. Experts said such tweaking of research strategy is standard in the pharmaceutical industry - and needed periodically as new competition and other factors affect revenue. Pfizer expects to spend up to $7.5 billion on research and development this year, a huge budget for the industry" - AP

Prescriptions cost tops GBP1bn

"The net cost of NHS prescriptions in Scotland passed GBP1 billion last year for the first time, figures have revealed. The total cost of prescriptions was GBP1.066 billion. The most commonly prescribed drug in Scotland is aspirin, prescribed more than three million times, followed by the cholesterol drug simvastatin and the co-codamol painkiller" - Fife Today

Tests start on pill that could lengthen millions of lives

"A drug that combines four different medicines and could halve deaths from heart attacks and stroke around the globe will enter human trials this week in London. The once-a-day polypill has been the dream of doctors for many years, but because the drugs it contains, including aspirin, are cheap, there has been no financial incentive for the pharmaceutical industry to get involved. Now, however, international teams of researchers, with the backing in the UK of the Wellcome Trust and the British Heart Foundation, are just a few years away from making the polypill an accessible reality" - Guardian