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Physician-Assisted Suicide Program Rarely Used, Study Finds
Posted 10 Apr 2013 by Drugs.com
WEDNESDAY, April 10 – Physician-assisted suicide laws can raise controversy and concern with their passage, but a new study from Washington state suggests many of those fears may be unfounded. Washington's Death With Dignity Act hasn't lead to scores of terminally ill people seeking lethal prescriptions, the researchers report: Almost three years after the law was enacted, just 255 people had obtained a lethal prescription from a physician. Of those 255 prescriptions, 40 were written for terminal cancer patients at the Seattle Cancer Care Alliance. And, in the new study, doctors there found that only 60 percent (24 people) of their patients chose to use their prescription to hasten their death. "Most Americans say that they want to die at home with family members around, not in pain and with their mental faculties as in tact as possible. But, not everyone is achieving that kind of good ... Read more
Related support groups: Phenobarbital, Butalbital, Mebaral, Seconal, Nembutal, Secobarbital, Nembutal Sodium, Butisol Sodium, Seconal Sodium, Pentobarbital, Luminal, Butabarbital, Mephobarbital, Amobarbital/Secobarbital, Busodium
Another Drug 'Take-Back Day' Scheduled for Saturday
Posted 26 Apr 2012 by Drugs.com
THURSDAY, April 26 – The fourth National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day is scheduled for Saturday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration says. The event gives Americans an opportunity to safely dispose of unwanted and unused prescription drugs. At the third Take-Back Day last October, participants turned in more than 377,000 pounds (188.5 tons) of unwanted or expired medications at more than 5,300 sites located in all 50 states. In total, the three Take-Back Days have taken in nearly 1 million pounds of prescription drugs during the past 13 months. "The amount of prescription drugs turned in by the American public during the past three Take-Back Day events speaks volumes about the need to develop a convenient way to rid homes of unwanted or expired prescription drugs," DEA administrator Michele Leonhart said in an agency news release. "The DEA remains hard at ... Read more
Related support groups: Suboxone, Xanax, Methadone, Oxycodone, Percocet, OxyContin, Adderall, Hydrocodone, Vicodin, Morphine, Klonopin, Norco, Fentanyl, Lortab, Ambien
Sleeping Pills Linked to Raised Risk of Death, Cancer: Study
Posted 27 Feb 2012 by Drugs.com
MONDAY, Feb. 27 – Prescription sleeping pills may help you get some much needed rest at night, but using them routinely might also make it more likely that you will die or develop certain types of cancer, research suggests. A new study suggests that those who take these medications are four times more likely to die than people who don't take them. What's more, the research shows that sleeping pills is also associated with a raised risk for certain cancers. The findings appear online Feb. 27 in the journal BMJ Open. Sleeping pills linked to these risks included benzodiazepines such as temazepam; non-benzodiazepines such as Ambien (zolpidem), Lunesta (eszopiclone) and Sonata (zaleplon); barbiturates; and sedative antihistamines. The new study only shows an association between the sleeping aids and death risk, not cause-and-effect, and many experts are urging caution in jumping to any ... Read more
Related support groups: Xanax, Cancer, Klonopin, Ambien, Ativan, Valium, Clonazepam, Lorazepam, Alprazolam, Diazepam, Zolpidem, Temazepam, Lunesta, Restoril, Phenobarbital
New Guidelines Issued for Combining HIV, Seizure Meds
Posted 4 Jan 2012 by Drugs.com
WEDNESDAY, Jan. 4 – Physicians need to take care when prescribing seizure medication to HIV/AIDS patients to prevent harmful interactions between drugs, experts warn. The cautionary note from the American Academy of Neurology (AAN) has led to the issuance of a new AAN guideline, which was developed in consultation with the International League Against Epilepsy. "It is important that patients know exactly which drugs they are taking and provide that information to all prescribing health care providers caring for them," lead guideline author Dr. Gretchen L. Birbeck, of Michigan State University in East Lansing, said in an AAN news release. "Doctors may need to watch and adjust drug doses in people with HIV/AIDS who take seizure drugs," added Birbeck, who is also an AAN fellow. Seizures and related disorders are not uncommon among HIV patients, according to Birbeck and colleagues. It is ... Read more
Related support groups: Seizures, Tegretol, Dilantin, HIV Infection, Seizure Prevention, Carbamazepine, Phenobarbital, Phenytoin, Tegretol XR, Seizure Prophylaxis, Carbatrol, Epitol, Di-Phen, Equetro, Phenytek
Epilepsy Drugs' Risk of Birth Defects May Be Dose-Dependent
Posted 6 Jun 2011 by Drugs.com
SUNDAY, June 5 – Four of the most frequently prescribed epilepsy drugs appear to increase the risk of serious birth defects when taken early in pregnancy, a new study finds. And the higher the dosage, the greater the risk, the international team of researchers reported in the June 6 online edition of The Lancet Neurology. "Our results show that dose selection is as crucial as the choice of drug," the authors said in a journal news release. Their study gives doctors the opportunity to prescribe the safest anti-seizure medication at the safest level for women with epilepsy who want to get pregnant, they said. The drugs studied were carbamazepine (Tegretol, Epitol), lamotrigine (Lamictal), valproic acid (Depakote), and phenobarbital. The rate of birth defects was higher with increased dose for all the drugs, the researchers said, but they emphasized that the vast majority of women in ... Read more
Related support groups: Lamictal, Tegretol, Lamotrigine, Carbamazepine, Phenobarbital, Tegretol XR, Lamictal XR, Carbatrol, Epitol, Valproic Acid, Equetro, Depakene, Lamictal Blue, Stavzor, Luminal
Epilepsy Drugs May Raise Fracture Risk in Older Adults
Posted 11 Jan 2011 by Drugs.com
TUESDAY, Jan. 11 – Epilepsy drugs increase older adults' risk for bone fractures, a new study shows. Canadian researchers analyzed the medical records of 15,792 people 50 and older who'd had non-traumatic fractures between April 1996 and March 2004. Each person was matched with up to three people who'd never had a fracture, for a total of 47,289 people to serve as controls. The researchers also looked at the participants' use of epilepsy drugs, including carbamazepine (Carbatrol, Epitol, Tegretol), clonazepam (Klonopin), ethosuximide (Zarontin), gabapentin (Gabarone, Neurontin), phenobarbital (Luminal), phenytoin (Dilantin, Phenytek) and valproic acid (Depakene, Depakote). All but one of the drugs was associated with an increased risk for fractures. The greatest risk was among people taking phenytoin and carbamazepine. Valproic acid was the only drug not linked with an increased chance ... Read more
Related support groups: Klonopin, Gabapentin, Clonazepam, Neurontin, Tegretol, Dilantin, Carbamazepine, Phenobarbital, Phenytoin, Tegretol XR, Carbatrol, Epitol, Valproic Acid, Klonopin Wafer, Zarontin
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