New Oral Multiple Sclerosis Drugs Increase Variety of Treatment Options

Cladribine and fingolimod, two new drugs for treating multiple sclerosis have been shown to reduce the rates of relapse in MS patients. While these drugs are still pending approval, research has shown that they are effective in keeping 80% or more patients relapse-free during the period of study. Both drugs are taken orally, therefore, if they are approved, could mean an end to painful injections for many MS patients.

The results of three studies have been published online in the New England Journal of Medicine concerning cladribine and fingolimod as treatment for a relapsing-remitting form of Multiple Sclerosis. Supporters of these new oral drugs suggest that they could provide a “new horizon” for MS patients and a larger variety of treatment options.

Researchers first studied fingolimod by comparing it with an already established treatment for MS and looking at the relapse rate after 12 months in 1,153 patients. They found that the relapse rate was lower in the groups taking fingolimod. While 69% of patients treated with the established MS drug were relapse free after a year, nearly 80% of those treated with fingolimod were relapse- free.

In another study, Gavin Giovannoni, MB, PhD, of Barts and the London School of Medicine and Dentistry at Queen Mary University of London and his colleagues studied more than 1,300 MS patients treated with Cladribine. Throughout the almost two-year study, 79-80% of patients taking cladribine were relapse-free, compared to just 61% of relapse-free patients taking a placebo.

‘”This is really big news,” says John Richert, MD, executive vice president for research and clinical programs at the National Multiple Sclerosis Society, New York. “Having oral therapies available increases the likelihood that people will be willing to start the drug early in the course of their disease and continue on the drugs with good compliance long term.”

Around 400,000 patients have MS in America and it is a chronic, often disabling disease. Around 85% of MS patients are diagnosed with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis, in which flare-ups are followed by remissions.

For more information about multiple sclerosis treatment options, visit www.orderonlinedrugs.com

FDA Alert: Counterfeit Alli being sold on the Internet

The FDA and GlaxoSmithKline have warned Consumers to be aware of fake and “potentially harmful” versions of the weight loss drug Alli that are being sold on the Internet through auction websites such as eBay.

The counterfeit versions of Alli look very similar to the original, but these fake pills are not filled with orlistat – the main ingredient in the official weight loss drugs Alli and Xenical. Instead, they are packed with sibutramine.

Sibutramine can be found in the prescription weight loss drug Meridia and may have a powerful affect on the chemical signals in the brain. Due to this, patients need a doctor’s prescription in order to take Meridia and the drug should not be used by certain people.

In addition, Alli is taken three times during the day while Meridia is only taken once.

The counterfeit Alli has only been found in 60 milligram, 120-count refill packs. The real drug’s manufacturer, GlaxoSmithKline, believes that the fake drugs are only being sold on the internet.

In order to identify the fake drugs, GlaxoSmithKiline gives these guidelines:

• The LOT code information will be missing from the top of the box
• The expiration date will include month, day, and year (ie. 20012010). The authentic Alli expiration date includes only the month and year (ie. 01/10)
• The seal on the bottle should read “SEALED FOR YOUR PROTECTION” in white ink. This statement is not present on the fake product.
• The capsule size is slightly larger in the fake pills and the contents of the capsules are different – the fake content is powdery while the real product is more of a pellet shape.

If you have any questions or concerns, visit GlaxoSmithKline’s myalli.com to see pictures of the real and fake product. If you think you have purchased the fake Alli, the FDA would like to hear from you calling 800-551-3989

For up-to-date FDA alerts and prescription drug news, visit www.orderonlinedrugs.com

Drugs to Avoid if you are an Olympic Athlete

With the winter Olympics fast approaching and anti-drug regulations being strengthened to prevent illegal doping, Olympic athletes must be extra careful of what they put in their body. There are many banned substances and prescription drugs that all athletes should avoid.

If you do require a prescription before an event, it is important to remind your doctor that you are an athlete and are subject to all anti-doping regulations. Doctors should ensure that the medication prescribed is free of all banned substances. For more information about these substances, consult the National Anti-Doping Organization (NADO). If you are planning on taking a medication that does not require a prescription (“over-the-counter”) it is also highly recommended that you consult NADO or show the prohibited list to a pharmacist.

If you do take medication before an Olympic event or drug testing, the amount of time it may take to get rid of the substance from your body depends on the nature of the substance, the quantity, the individual’s metabolism, the administration method, ingredients, and other factors. There is no set rule as to how long these substance will last as it can vary from a few hours to several months.

It is also important to remember that prohibited substances can come in many unexpected forms other than prescription drugs. They can also enter your body in different ways including, contact with your skin (creams and ointments), inhalation (if you breathe in vapour or mist), contact with mucus membrane (eye or ear drops, suppository, etc…). Any product with medicinal ingredients that act to reduce inflammation, relieve pain, kill bacteria, or other intentions, will be present in your blood before being eliminated by your kidneys and turned into urine.

If you receive a positive result from ingesting medication without being aware of its prohibited substance you will still be held accountable. As an athlete, you are completely responsible for everything that goes into your body. Due to the serious problems with illegal drug use in athletics and the Olympics, if an athlete tests positive, the result will always be disqualification and possible sanction or suspension.

In addition, extreme caution must always been used if a dietary or nutritional supplement is being used. In many countries, the manufacturing and labelling of supplements do not necessarily follow strict rules. This can lead to a supplement containing an undeclared substance that is prohibited by anti-doping regulations. There have been a number of tests that have had positive results due to the misuse of supplements.

Lists of prohibited prescription drugs and medications can be found at regulated anti-doping websites such as the Canadian Centre for Ethics in Sport (CCES). Banned substances can include common cough and cold medications including Dayquil, Sudafed Cold & Flu, Tylenol Decongestant and others. Substances prohibited at all times (in and out of competition) include Anabolic Agents, peptide hormones, stimulents (can include caffeine), narcotics and cannabinoids.

If you need to take medication that contains a prohibited substance, any athlete has the right to apply for a Therapeutic Use Exemption (TUE). Contact NADO or your International Federation to be accepted for a TUE.

For more information about Olympic prohibited drugs and other medication information, visit www.orderonlinedrugs.com

Painkiller Celebrex May Reduce Risk of Skin Cancer

People with a family history of a skin disorder may be able to reduce the risk of developing skin cancer simply by taking the painkiller and prescription drug celecoxib (Celebrex), new research is suggesting. The study is still in preliminary stages and the drug is not yet approved for this specific use, but results look promising.

The skin disorder, called Gorlin syndrome, usually causes a patient to develop hundreds or thousands of cancerous lesions (basal cell carcinomas). Researchers chose to study this particular form of skin cancer because their goal was to find an element in these high-risk patients that could be transferable to the “normal” population. This could then allow for a form of chemoprevention that could decrease the rate of skin cancers in every person.

Researchers studied patients with basal cell carcinoma who took 200mgs of Canadian prescription drug Celebrex twice a day. Dr. Ervin H. Epstein Jr., senior scientist at the Children’s Hospital of Oakland Research Institute in California reported that these patients had a significantly lower amount of lesions after two years compared to those who were taking a placebo.

However, Celebrex has been found to increase cardiovascular side effects and more research is needed in order to prove its safety.

These findings can be found in the January issue of Cancer Prevention Research. For more of the latest prescription drug and medical research news, visit www.orderonlinedrugs.com

Stay Healthy: Fake Drugs are Faking out More Consumers

The makers of counterfeit prescription drugs are greatly advancing their production techniques in order to get a share of the estimated $75 billion market in fake drugs, researchers are reporting.

Some of the counterfeit tactics include utilizing the exact same technology that genuine pharmaceutical companies employ to identify their products as the real thing.

Today’s fake drugs have advanced not only in terms of packaging and look, but in the ingredient list as well. Some fake medication may even contain a small amount of real medicinal ingredients such as acetaminophen. The inclusion of real medicine exploits the placebo effect by tricking drug testers or patients into believing they are taking real drugs.

Often, fake drugs contain completely different drugs, such as Viagra being found in malaria medicine. They can also contain dangerous ingredients, such as a medicine that killed hundreds of patients in Nigeria, Panama and Bangladesh recently. Security features, such as holograms, are also being copied to make the fake packaging look identical to the real medication.

So how can consumers tell the difference between counterfeit drugs and real drugs?  The best advice is to always order medications from a licensed online pharmacy that is verified.  A licensed online pharmacy will always have their pharmacy information, location, license number and site manager clearly posted on their website.  In addition, they should also be verified by pharmacychecker.com, the leading online pharmacy watchdog.  A perfect example of what a licensed Canadian online pharmacy should look like is www.orderonlinedrugs.com.

Never purchase prescription drugs from a pharmacy that is not licensed or verified.   Remember to always buy medications from a verified source such as OrderOnlineDrugs in order to stay safe and healthy.

Are Antidepressants Only Beneficial for the Severely Depressed?

Not all antidepressants are the same.  While some work best for people with severe depression, they may not help those with mild or moderate depression.

A new study was recently completed that tried to determine the effectiveness of an antidepressant versus a placebo in patients with severe depression. The results from six previously published studies of the effectiveness of antidepressants on 718 adults with diverse levels of depression were examined by Jay C Fournier, a psychology graduate student at the University of Pennsylvania.

The main findings, reported by Fournier, was that the benefit of taking antidepressants varied due to the severity of the depression. The researchers also determined that some depressed people even respond positively to taking a placebo. However, severely depressed patients are much more likely to benefit from antidepressants.

From the six studies that Fournier and his colleagues determined their results from, three looked at paroxetine (Paxil) while the others looked at imipramine (Tofranil).

Paxil (similar to Celexa, Prozac and Zoloft) works by boosting mood by increasing the level of neurotransmitter serotonin in the brain. Tofranil, an older medication, works similarly by increasing neurotransmitter serotonin and norepinephrine.

http://www.orderonlinedrugs.com/info/imipramine/