By: Jacqueline Meaney, PharmD Candidate c/o 2015, University at Buffalo: School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences — Psychotropic medications are typically used in conjunction with cognitive behavioral therapy to treat behavioral problems that affect children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Symptoms of ASD typically include a need for routines (change intolerance), difficulty with verbal and…

By: Ada Seldin, Staff Editor – The overuse of antipsychotics in the nursing home population for off-label indications continues to impact patient safety. In 2005, the FDA issued a black box warning that stated, “The treatment of behavioral disorders in elderly patients with dementia with atypical antipsychotic medications is associated with increased mortality.” The evidence…

By: Katharine Cimmino, Editor-in-Chief – Pressure ulcers can be a painful condition decreasing the quality of life of patients and prolonging hospital stays.1 About 10% of hospital inpatients and 26% of hospice admissions have pressure sores.2 Pressure ulcers are injuries that occur when pressure is applied for prolonged periods of time over bony prominences.1 There…

By: Aleena Cherian, Co-Copy Editor [Graphics-Focused] and Jenny Prakash, PharmD Candidate c/o 2014 – Starting your rotations in 5th year usually brings mixed emotions. On one hand, it’s a relief to finally be finished with labs and D&Ds…imagine, a whole year without any exams! But on the other hand, now you have to test how…

By: Katharine Cimmino, Editor-in-Chief and Erica Dimitropoulos, Senior Staff Editor –       Just last month, St. John’s University College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences kindly welcomed a new Dean into our family, Dean Russell J. DiGate. Dean DiGate is a highly experienced educator and academic leader. He attended the University of Rochester, where…

By: Aleena Cherian, Co-Copy Editor [Graphics-Focused] – Attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a chronic neurological behavior characterized by persistent patterns of inattention and/or hyperactive behavior, resulting in a wide range of emotional, functional, and neurocognitive impairments.1,2 First line therapy for ADHD consists of stimulant medications together with non-pharmacologic interventions, and has been shown to improve…

By: Bethsy Jacob, PharmD Candidate 2014 – On January 18, 2013, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced a new approval for Botox, generically known as OnabotulinumtoxinA. Patients diagnosed with urinary incontinence due to an overactive bladder can be prescribed Botox, if they are unable to take or are unresponsive to anticholinergic medications.  This…

By: Lunbao (Jerry) Huang, Pharm.D. Candidate c/o 2013 – Donepezil, brand name Aricept®, is an acetylcholinesterase inhibitor indicated as monotherapy for Alzheimer’s disease, the most common form of dementia.  Cholinergic deficiency in the cortex and basal forebrain contributes to cognitive deficits in these patients.  Donepezil reversibly, noncompetitively inhibits centrally active acetylcholinesterase, the enzyme responsible for…

By: SlanixPaul T.  Alex, Pharm.D. Candidate c/o 2014 – Progressing into one’s fourth year of college is usually a time of mixed emotions for the average college student.  A melting pot of excitement and a sense of accomplishment at the thought of finally graduating after four years of hard work combined with a tinge of…

By: Marie Huang – The amphitheater at Nassau University Medical Center fills up slowly as Dr. Alan Jay Cohen, a psychiatrist from Oakland, California, makes his way up to the podium to lead a talk about bipolar disorder, specifically differentiating between its presentations in adults versus in developing children. Among nonprofessionals, bipolar disorder is simply…

By: Aleena Chacko, Long Island University Pharm.D. Candidate c/o 2013 – Established in 1996, Novartis International AG is a multinational pharmaceutical company based in Switzerland.  On January 8, 2012, Novartis issued a recall on some popular over the counter (OTC) medications in the United States (U.S.) over concerns about broken or incorrect tablets ending up…

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…

By: Neal Shah – The focus of pharmacy is rapidly shifting from simple filling and dispensing of prescriptions to preventative medicine and efficient clinical practice. The field of genetics has been incorporated in many defining therapies and will continue to shape how we treat our patients. Examples discussed here are the roles of human leukocyte…