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Celebrex? Vioxx? Can My Doctor Provide Me With Safe Prescription Painkillers?
The news has been full of the recent FDA findings on a new set of drugs to help relieve pain. These drugs have been approved for re-release, but it is unclear whether Vioxx will be available again and whether physicians will feel comfortable prescribing Celebrex and Bextra for many of their patients. What happened to Celebrex and Vioxx? Celebrex, Vioxx, and Bextra are all non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs, pronounced en-said-z), similar to drugs like ibuprofen and naproxen, that are available over the counter (OTC). Celebrex, Vioxx and Bextra, (sometimes called Cox-2 inhibitors) however, use a slightly different method to achieve the same effect as their OTC cousins; this new method was supposed to limit the side effects some people experience on OTC drugs, including stomach and intestinal problems and allergic reactions. It was thought that because these drugs were less likely to cause such problems, they might be safer for patients with painful chronic conditions (like arthritis) to use for long periods of time. Unfortunately, some studies of Cox-2 inhibitors suggest that while they don't cause the sorts of side effects of other NSAIDs, they may create a greater risk of myocardial infarction (heart attack) or stroke. For people already at risk for these diseases (including those who have already experienced a stroke or heart problem), taking these drugs over the long run may significantly increase the risk of heart problems. Now What Can I Do To Get Pain Relief? Until a final decision has been made on each of these drugs, what can your healthcare provider do to help you with pain management? Here are important pieces of information to think about in determining what next steps to take: * The Cox-2 inhibitors were not shown to be more effective than other NSAIDs, like naproxen. If you've been on or thinking about trying Vioxx or another Cox-2 inhibitor, you may be able to use an older anti-inflammatory drug. Naproxen, one of the older NSAIDs, may be an anti-inflammatory drug that actually lowers heart attack risk. * Some people started on a Cox-2 inhibitors because they had a stomach ulcer or other risk factors for stomach or intestine bleeding (for example, people on blood thinners), which may be made worse by older anti-inflammatory drugs. For some people who are at risk for bleeding, other options like acetaminophen may be an option. * There are lots of other medical options. Steroids can be used for shorter periods of time to manage inflammatory pain from diseases like arthritis and lupus. Opioids (drugs that resemble opium), such as oxycodone, codeine, and hydrocodone (Vicodin) can help with pain management, but they can have serious side effects, and some of them can be addictive, so working closely with your healthcare worker is key to determine if these will work for you. In addition, some antidepressants may help with chronic (long-term) pain, though the way this works isn't yet known * New procedures may be of assistance to you. Nerve block therapy (in which certain nerves are temporarily anaesthetized) can relieve pain temporarily. "Implantable "technologies, like spinal cord stimulation (SCS) systems and implantable drug delivery systems, do seem to help some people for whom other pain relief methods don't work. * If you aren't getting the relief you need (with or without the use of Cox-2 inhibitors), you may want to consult a pain specialist. Some large hospitals (such as Stanford University) have departments devoted to pain management. The American Board of Pain Medicine and the PainConnection (at painconnection.org) can help you locate a pain specialist who can work with your other healthcare professionals to put a new treatment plan together for you. Harris, G., "F.D.A. Official Admits 'Lapses' on Vioxx," New York Times, March 2, 2005 Krames, E., "Implantable Technologies: Spinal Cord Stimulation and Implantable Drug Delivery Systems," http://www.painconnection.org/ Winfield, J. et al "A Primer on Pain Management: Optimal Therapy for the Patient in Pain," Medscape CME, February 2005. Copyright (C) Shoppe.MD and Ian Mason, 2004-2005 Ian Mason, owner of Shoppe.MD, your source for Online Prescription Medications, drug information and support forums. Ian is a fat-to-fit student of health, weight loss, exercise, and several martial arts; maintaining several websites in an effort to help provide up-to-date and helpful information for other who share his interests in health of body and mind.
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Alternative Medicine Lunesta Memory Problems Lunesta may be the only sleeping pill that is FDA approved for long-term use, but it still has some of the same effects as other sleep aids. Ambien, Sonata and others have all been known to cause this problem. It can make life strange and difficult for some of us. Robotic Future of Hospitals; Pandemic Prevention and Bio-Terrorist Attack There is a huge concern in the medical industry that if a biological weapon were released that those sick might come to the hospitals in such large numbers that before you realized an attack had occurred everyone in every nearby hospital would also be infected. Then of course the hospital itself would be rendered useless and all those already in the hospital no matter what the reason would literally condemned. The biggest issue with this is that those places we have available to help our populations stay well would be immediately and totally useless. For some background on the World Think Tank discussion and on-going subject of bio-terrorism control and isolation, please see this page: Sinusitis: Sinus Infection Deals a Corporate KO Sinusitis and Sinus Infection Starts with a Little Sniffle Heart Disease: The Dangers Of Coronary Heart Attack And How To Avoid It What is a coronary heart attack? Natural Vitamin E Combined with Vitamin C for Treatment of Alzheimers Disease Checklist of Treatments for Alzheimer's Disease Medication Compliance Kit ... A Life Saver Pill Proof LLC introduces the first, easy to use medication compliance kit for consumers and medical professionals. Owner, Jane Langdon, has a sister in law with Parkinson's Disease. While visiting her sister in law's doctor, he noted that the biggest problem with her progress was correctly taking her many medications. Jane asked if there was a system available to help her. The doctor replied," No, I wish there was". Jane asked if she made one, would he be interested in it. "Make it and I will use it", he said. After two prototypes, the doctor approved it. That was the beginning of her new business at www.sew-beautiful.us/pillproof Medical Tests: What Does a Normal Range Mean? We have a marvelous array of medical tests available to us. Many of them-typically blood-tests-even come with results expressed in numbers signifying the exact quantity of something that was measured. On laboratory reports these measured quantities are often accompanied by a "normal range" for what the laboratory apparently thinks the value should have been, showing a lower number and a higher number. So if you had a laboratory test, what does it mean when your measurement falls inside or outside this range? Discipline Medicine Most writers suffer from a lack of discipline. The urge to procrastinate is strong as writing is agonizing work because it is done alone without support from colleagues, acquaintances, and friends unlike other occupations that take place in an office, a store, a factory, or some other location where people are present. Thus a strong incentive is needed. What is Going On With Pharmacies in Canada There is a large amount of talk lately in regard to Canadian pharmacies, and why not? pharmacies in Canada provide the same identical perscription drugs you would find at the local pharmacy, deliver to your front door, and most importantly, save you some cash. But not all pharmacies are the same. This article has been composed to help you to identify what you ought to look around for when doing business with Canadian pharmacies online. Web Therapy: Enhancing Patient Communication with Web Access According to Jennifer Lyons' chart, she's just a bad slip and fall who's lucky enough to be on her way to a full recovery. Medical Billing Specialist As Pres. Bush was touring the Midwest, shortly before he was re-elected as President, and even after, he spoke of medical reform centering on liability costs. He called it "defensive medicine." Searching for a good medical billing specialist who is familiar with reliable electronic medical record systems is quite possibly one of the best defensive medicines that consumers and practices can employ. I say that because small practices spend an average of $150,000 per year in liability costs. That may include insurance or even law suits. Consumers may also have to fit the liability bill if things get ugly. Coumadin Users Can Avoid Unnecessary Complications By Wearing Identification The police arrive at the accident scene promptly. A driver has run his automobile into a guardrail while exiting a highway. The driver does not seem to be injured but is somewhat incoherent and is slipping in and out of consciousness. Did he strike his head? Is he inebriated? Is he on drugs? A quick review of the driver's attire reveals a medical alert bracelet that identifies him as a Coumadin user. This is crucial information for those responding to the incident. Over Medication; Grandma is on Drugs It is very interesting this hypochondriac attitude which permeates our society? The power of suggestion is alive and well? "Do not feel good today, take a drug?" Oh that made you feel a different way? Take another drug? Oh those two together caused another feeling you do not like, my oh my, here is a third drug? You know these tests prove conclusive that this is not working and something is wrong, we should try this other drug too? Crazy, are you buying all this. Anxiety Management With Prescription BuSpar: Don't Worry, Be Happy We've all had one of those weeks: the washing machine overflows, the dog forgets his housetraining and the toddler her toilet training, the boss is going through a divorce and making everyone miserable. And you feel like you just don't know how to handle it all. New Antidepressant Developments and Approvals New antidepressant development, until fairly recently, was at best a random, and at worst a problematic and frustrating, process. Often, medications that were developed for one thing were discovered quite accidentally to have much more important therapeutic effects for a completely different disorder. It has been well described that some of the original antipsychotics were originally developed to assist in anesthesia, and some of the original new antidepressants were originally intended to be medications for tuberculosis or psychosis. New antidepressant development was done on a "chemical" basis; that is, guesses were made as to compounds that would be safe and effective based on chemical structures of established medications. This was very much a trial-and-error process, since very little was known about how these drugs worked and very little could be measured beyond actually giving them to a patient.
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