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Original New Drug Application Approvals by US FDA (01 - 15 March 2019)

5 days ago

New drug applications approved by US FDA as of 01 - 15 March 2019 which includes New Molecular Entities (NMEs) and new biologics. It does not include Tentative Approvals. Supplemental approvals may have occurred since the original approval date.

Use of postmenopausal hormone therapy ups risk of Alzheimer’s disease

Stephen Padilla, 6 days ago

Long-term use of systemic hormone therapy may increase the risk of Alzheimer’s disease in postmenopausal women, which is not associated with progestogen type or age at initiation of said therapy, according to a Finnish study. On the other hand, use of vaginal oestradiol does not appear to increase such risk.

Shifting paradigms in MS management: Early, optimized interventions improve patient outcomes

04 May 2018

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is one of the most common neurological disorders – affecting over 2.3 million people globally – and it is the leading cause of nontraumatic disability in young adults. However,the availability of supportive resources and services for people with MS is scarce in many regions of the world. In Malaysia, the prevalence of MS is estimated at 2-3/100,000; the current Malaysian clinical practice guidelines on the management of MS recommend disease modifying agents, such as interferon-β and teriflunomide, as first-line therapeutic agents. In this article, Dr Singer - in partnership with Sanofi and the Malaysian Society of Neurosciences - shares his insights into managing MS dynamically, highlighting the importance of early intervention in improving patient outcomes.

Management of dementia beyond cognition – a deeper look into BPSD and CVD

13 Dec 2017

At the Schwabe-Menarini lunch symposium of the 11^th International Congress of the Asian Society AgainstDementia (ASAD) 2017 held in Bangkok, Thailand, Professor Ralf Ihl highlighted the role of standardized Gingko biloba extract EGb 761^®for the treatment of patients with behavioural and psychological symptoms of dementia (BPSD). Meanwhile, Associate Professor Nagaendran Kandiah presented clinical findings on the association between cerebrovascular disease (CVD) and dementia, and emphasized the role of EGb 761^®in the management of dementia with CVD.

Drug and non-drug approaches to managing tension-type headache

01 Jul 2017

At the recent launch of Nurofen^® Express by Reckitt Benckiser Malaysia, Ms Joyce McSwan spoke on the importance of managing tension-type headache (TTH), highlighting the roles of drug and non-drug approaches in improving treatment outcomes.

Hypertension and cholesterol lowering interventions do not reduce cognitive decline

Roshini Claire Anthony, 22 Nov 2016

Blood pressure lowering medications and statins do not prevent cognitive and functional decline in elderly patients, according to results of the HOPE-3 trial* presented at the Scientific Sessions of the American Heart Association (AHA 2016) held recently in New Orleans, Louisiana, US.

An uncommon cause of hyperthyroidism

Dr. Rose Zhao-Wei Ting, 16 Nov 2016

A 55-year-old man presented with almost one year history of heat intolerance, mild palpitation and significant weight loss. Free T3 and T4 were elevated with normal TSH. Patient had suboptimal response to carbimazole therapy.

Intensive/guideline-directed BP-lowering after ischaemic stroke yield similar functional outcomes

Roshini Claire Anthony, 25 Feb 2019

Among patients with a recent acute ischaemic stroke treated with thrombolytic therapy, intensive blood pressure (BP)-lowering conferred no additional benefit in functional recovery compared with guideline-recommended BP-lowering, despite a reduced risk of intracranial haemorrhage with intensive therapy, according to results of the ENCHANTED* trial.

Stroke dovetails with spikes in opioid misuse, infective endocarditis

Elvira Manzano, 25 Feb 2019

Hospitalization rates for stroke increased by 20 percent each year between 2008 and 2015, according to a large US study, and these incidents were apparently tied to spikes in opioid misuse and cases of drug-related infective endocarditis.

Minimally-invasive surgery may not be optimal for stroke

Audrey Abella, 22 Feb 2019

The evacuation of moderate-to-large brain bleeds using stereotactic catheter aspiration and the thrombolytic agent alteplase (ie, MISTIE* approach) was no better than standard medical therapy in providing functional improvement post-stroke, according to the results of the MISTIE III trial presented at ISC 2019. However, this strategy appears to hold promise in reducing mortality risk.

New study EXTENDs tPA window to 9 hours in select stroke patients

Pearl Toh, 21 Feb 2019

Patients presenting within 9 hours from stroke onset or with wake-up stroke can still benefit from thrombolytic therapy based on automated computed tomography (CT) perfusion imaging-guided patient selection, according to the EXTEND* study presented at ISC 2019.

Smoking has no benefit on ICH outcomes

Roshini Claire Anthony, 21 Feb 2019

Nicotine may not have a neuroprotective effect on intracerebral haemorrhage (ICH) as previously suggested in animal studies, with former or current smokers demonstrating no difference in post-ICH functional outcomes compared with non-smokers, according to findings from the US-based ERICH* study.

ANNEXA-4 confirms andexanet efficacy, safety for antithrombotic-related acute bleeding

Roshini Claire Anthony, 20 Feb 2019

Andexanet alfa effectively reduced anti-factor Xa activity in patients who experienced acute bleeding while on a factor Xa inhibitor*, results from the ANNEXA-4** study showed.

Nitroglycerin patch fails to improve post-stroke functional outcomes

Audrey Abella, 20 Feb 2019

Prehospital, transdermal delivery of the nitric oxide (NO) donor nitroglycerin did not reduce blood pressure (BP) and post-stroke disability in patients with suspected ultra-acute stroke, according to the results of the RIGHT*-2 trial presented at ISC 2019, thus debunking the conventional belief that early NO administration to supplement the low vascular NO concentrations may benefit acute stroke.