By Davidta Brown, Senior Staff Editor – The pain, nausea, and light or sound sensitivity that comprise a migraine attack afflict more than 10% of individuals around the world, easily making migraines one of the most globally debilitating diseases of the present day.1 According to the International Headache Society (IHS), migraines are defined by both…

By: Sang Hyub Kim, DPM Candidate c/o 2018, New York College of Podiatric Medicine – I was diagnosed with ulcerative colitis in 2009. For the past five years, I have literally taken tons of immunosuppressant medications, ranging from corticosteroids (prednisone), to chemotherapeutics (6-Mercaptopurine) in an effort to suppress the inflammation in my colon. Currently, I…

By: Erica Dimitropoulos Co-Copy Editor [Content- Focused]  – On February 14, 2014, elosulfase alfa (Vimizim™) became an FDA-approved enzyme replacement therapy for Morquio A Syndrome, a type of mucopolysaccharidosis (MPS IVA).1 Elosulfase alfa was granted priority review and was also the first drug to receive the Rare Pediatric Disease Priority Review Voucher that motivates the development…

By: Rebecca Gilene, PharmD Candidate c/o 2014, St. Louis College of Pharmacy – The FDA approved macitentan (Opsumit®) on October 18, 2013 for the treatment of pulmonary arterial hypertension.1 Pulmonary arterial hypertension, often referred to as PAH, is a disease characterized by high blood pressure in the arteries between the heart and lungs. An increase…

By: Sang Hyo Kim, Staff Editor – A new experimental vaccine, PfsPZ, offers great promise as a cure for malaria. PfsPZ demonstrated 100% success in protecting subjects from this mosquito-borne tropical disease, which affects about 200 million people and causes 660,000 death annually.1,2 Historically, it has been known that sustained immunity for malaria could be…

By: Davidta Brown, Staff Editor – For the estimated 7.5 million individuals in the United States living with iron deficiency anemia (IDA), there is now a new alternative to iron supplements or time-consuming, repetitive infusions. On July 25, 2013, the FDA approved ferric carboxymaltose injection (Injectafer®) for the treatment of IDA, especially in patients who…

By: Tamara Yunusova, Senior Staff Editor – After a lengthy fifteen-year hiatus in recombinant drug approvals, FDA-approved Recombinant Coagulation Factor IX (Rixubis) has mounted to the forefront of Hemophilia B drug therapy. The recombinant coagulation factor gained orphan drug approval on June 26, 2013 for routine prophylaxis, control of bleeding episodes, and perioperative management in…

By: Sang Hyo Kim, Staff Editor – On June 27, 2013, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), AIDS.gov, and other national and local entities organized the 19th annual National HIV Testing Day. On this day, the theme of “Take the Test, Take Control” was employed to spread awareness of testing and prevention methods…

By: Erica Dimitropoulos, Senior Staff Editor – Lupus is highly unpredictable and occurs without warning; there is no known cause and no known cure. It affects over 1.5 million Americans, 90% of whom are women between the ages of 15 – 44.1 No two cases of lupus are alike, making it a very difficult disease…

By: Andy Zhang, PharmD Candidate c/o 2015 – On March 28, 2013, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced the approval of Tecfidera™ (dimethyl fumarate) for the treatment of relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis (MS) in adults.1 Tecfidera™ (dimethyl fumarate) will be the third oral drug used for the treatment of MS. The manufacturer Biogen…

By: Sharon Janak, PharmD Candidate c/o 2013 – How can we distinguish between vascular injury and Purple Glove Syndrome (an adverse effect of phenytoin)?  What are the warning signs and symptoms? Phenytoin is an anticonvulsant used to treat generalized tonic-clonic and partial seizures. It stabilizes neuronal cell membranes of the motor cortex by facilitating the…

By Nancy Rizkalla, PharmD candidate c/o 2015 –        Percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) with subsequent stent implantation is a highly effective approach in reducing the risk of death or ischemic complications following a myocardial infarction as well as improving the quality of life in patients with stable angina. PCI is ultimately performed in 60 –…

By: Steve Soman, Co-Editor-in-Chief – Varicella Zoster Immune Globulin (Varizig®) was approved by the FDA on December 21st of 2012. The Canadian pharmaceutical company Cangene Corporation, which is owned in-part by Apotex Inc., markets the new product.  The drug was approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to reduce “the severity of chicken pox…

By: Nandini Puranprashad, Pharm D. Candidate c/o 2013 – I’m sitting in a quaint coffee shop in Cherokee, North Carolina, sipping a dirty chai tea with some of my roommates with 1970s music chiming in the background as I write this article and words cannot describe my experiences at this rotation.  The most surprising aspect…

By: Marina Yermolayeva, PharmD Candidate c/o 2013 – “I’m allergic to the generic; I need the brand name medication,” is a common claim heard by many health care providers.  Managed care organizations get numerous calls from doctors and patients requesting prior authorizations to approve brand name medications whilst there are generic alternatives available on formulary.…

By: Neal Shah, Co-Editor-In-Chief – Contrast dyes enhance imaging for computer tomography (CT), magnetic resonance (MR), and X-rays.1  Dyes usually consist of barium, iodine, or gadolinium, depending on the procedure.2  CT and X-ray scans often use iodine for systemic imaging and barium sulfate for GI imaging, whereas MR imaging primarily uses gadolinium.2  Gadolinium and iodine…

By: Mohamed Dungersi, Associate Student Editor –  What is diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA)? Diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA) is an acute complication of uncontrolled diabetes or hyperglycemia. It is usually observed in cases of extreme hyperglycemia (usually in excess of 500 mg/dl, though it can occur over 250 mg/dl).1,2  It is usually characterized by the presence of hyperglycemia,…

By: Neal Shah, Co Editor-In-Chief – Pure Red Cell Aplasia (PRCA), also known as erythroblastopenia, is characterized by a suppression of erythrocytes in the bone marrow.  It is a peculiar oddity that the bone marrow’s progenitor cells still differentiate into white blood cells and platelets.1  PRCA has idiopathic, viral, auto-immune, and genetic etiologies.  Diamond-Blackfan syndrome…

By: Raymond Wu, Pharm.D. Candidate c/o 2013   The 5-hydroxytryptamine type 3 (5HT3) antagonists (e.g. ondansetron [Zofran®]) are commonly used in the prevention and treatment of nausea and vomiting in the inpatient setting.1  Overall, ondansetron is a well-tolerated medication with few side effects.1  Constipation, dizziness, and headache are the most commonly reported side effects associated…

By: Lauren Kaveski, Pharm.D. Candidate c/o 2013 – We see proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) used in many medication regimens, but it is unknown whether the majority of patients receive these medications for appropriate durations or indications.  For all labeled indications, other than Zollinger-Ellison Syndrome (a rare condition characterized by damaging gastrin hypersecretion and subsequent hydrochloric…

By Lunbao (Jerry) Huang, Pharm.D. Candidate c/o 2013 – Over the last two decades, there has been an increasing focus on hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC, most commonly known as liver cancer).  In the United States, as of 2011, there have been an estimated 26,190 new cases and 19,590 deaths from both hepatic and intrahepatic bile duct cancer.  Defined by the…

By: Neal Shah – Defined by the Joint National Committee, hypertension (HTN) is a systolic blood pressure (SBP) greater than or equal to 140 mmHg and a diastolic blood pressure (DBP) greater than or equal to 90 mmHg.  Patients with Stage 1 HTN have a SBP between 140 and 159 mmHg and DBP between 90…

By: Khilna Patel, Pharm.D. Candidate c/o 2012 – On October 25 of this year, Eli Lilly and Company announced a worldwide market withdrawal of Xigris (drotrecogin alfa), a drug previously indicated to treat severe sepsis in high-risk patients.  Drotrecogin alfa is a recombinant form of human activated protein C.  The efficacy of drotrecogin alfa was…

By Ebey P. Soman – Many living organisms occupy our intestines to aid us with metabolism, recycling of hormones, and, most importantly, protection against foreign pathogens.  When this normal flora of bacteria is altered or eliminated via antibiotic use, there is an opportunity for Clostridium difficile to infect us.  Stool transplant, or fecal bacteriotherapy, is…