By Jessica Pyhtila, PharmD, BCGP, BCPS
The FDA recently approved the CGRP antagonist atogepant (Qulipta) for the prevention of episodic migraine. It joins rimegepant (Nurtec) as the only other oral CGRP antagonist approved for this indication. …
By Jessica Pyhtila, PharmD, BCGP, BCPS
The FDA recently approved a dihydroergotamine mesylate nasal spray, to be sold under the brand name Trudhesa, for the treatment of migraine with or without aura in adults. The drug is the newest formulation of this ergot derivative, which was first approved in 1946…
By Jessica Pyhtila, PharmD, BCGP, BCPS
The CDC recently published an advisory stating that overdoses from synthetic opioids, generally fentanyl, and psychostimulants have significantly increased during COVID-19 mitigation attempts. …
By Jessica Pyhtila, PharmD, BCGP, BCPS
The American Gastroenterological Association recently released a set of best practices to improve screening and surveillance colonoscopies. The best practices consist of 15 recommendations to help guide care at both the provider and facility levels:
1. The quality of bowel preparation quality should be…
By Jessica Pyhtila, PharmD, BCGP, BCPS
A recent study in the Journal of the American Medical Association explored whether the combination of short and long-acting insulin, compared with long-acting insulin alone, increased cardiovascular events and mortality. …
By Jessica Pyhtila, PharmD, BCGP, BCPS
The American Society of Pain and Neuroscience recently released a set of best practices and guidelines on treating cancer-related pain from the primary pathology, metastasis, or side effects. …
By Jessica Pyhtila, PharmD, BCGP, BCPS
The National Comprehensive Cancer Network recently updated its set of guidelines about palliative care in cancer patients. The guidelines stress that palliative care is not synonymous with hospice, which is targeted towards patients with a life expectancy of 6 months or less. In contrast…
By Jessica Pyhtila, PharmD, BCGP, BCPS
The British Society of Gastroenterology recently published an update to their 2007 guideline for irritable bowel syndrome (IBS).
The guidelines state that in a primary care setting, the diagnosis of IBS may be made after 6 months of abdominal pain or discomfort, along with…
By Jessica Pyhtila, PharmD, BCGP, BCPS
The FDA recently expanded the approval of empagliflozin (Jardiance) to heart failure patients with reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF), to reduce the risk of hospitalization and cardiovascular death. …
By Jessica Pyhtila, PharmD, BCGP, BCPS
The CDC recently published a 2021 update to the 2015 sexually transmitted infections treatment guidelines. Specifically, the CDC updated the sections addressing:
— Treatment for N. gonorrhoeae, C. trachomatis, T. vaginalis, and M. genitalium
— Recommending metronidazole for a pelvic inflammatory disease treatment
—…
