Medications for Swine Flu

Definition of Swine Flu: Swine Influenza (swine flu) is a respiratory disease of pigs caused by type A influenza virus that regularly causes outbreaks of influenza in pigs. People do not normally get swine flu, but human infections can and do happen. The virus is contagious and can spread from human to human. The symptoms of swine flu in people are similar to the symptoms of regular human seasonal influenza and include fever, lethargy, lack of appetite and coughing. Some people with swine flu also have reported runny nose, sore throat, nausea, vomiting and diarrhea.

Drugs associated with Swine Flu
 
The following drugs and medications are in some way related to, or used in the treatment of Swine Flu. This service should be used as a supplement to, and NOT a substitute for, the expertise, skill, knowledge and judgment of healthcare practitioners.

Medicines For Swine Flue

TAMIFLU (oseltamivir phosphate) is available as capsules containing 30 mg, 45 mg, or 75 mg oseltamivir for oral use, in the form of oseltamivir phosphate, and as a powder for oral suspension, which when constituted with water as directed contains 12 mg/mL oseltamivir base. In addition to the active...

Source ..... http://www.drugs.com/tamiflu.html

Relenza speeds recovery from the flu. When started during the first 2 days of the illness, it hastens improvement by at least a day. It also can prevent the flu if treatment is started within 2 days after exposure to the virus. Relenza belongs to a class of antiviral drugs called

Source--- http://www.drugs.com/search.php?searchterm=Relenza

Update of Healthcare

Tysabri (Natalizumab): Update of Healthcare  

FDA notified healthcare professionals and patients that the risk of developing progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (PML) increases with the number of Tysabri infusions received. This new safety information, based on reports of 31 confirmed cases of PML received by the FDA as of January 21, 2010, will now be included in the Tysabri drug label and patient Medication Guide. 

Information about the occurrence of Immune Reconstitution Inflammatory Syndrome (IRIS) in patients who have developed PML and subsequently discontinued Tysabri has also been added to the drug label. IRIS is a rare condition characterized by a severe inflammatory response that can occur during or following immune system recovery, causing an unexpected decline in a patient's condition after return of immune function.

Based on the available information, FDA believes that the clinical benefits of Tysabri continue to outweigh the potential risks. Revisions to the drug label and patient Medication Guide, with the continued use of the TOUCH Prescribing Program, are intended to maximize the safe use of Tysabri and the identification of new PML cases.

New Swine Flu Strain

New Swine Flu Strain Found in Brazil:

Scientists in Brazil say they've discovered a new strain of the swine flu virus, according to published reports. But it's not yet clear if the strain is any more dangerous than the previously-undiscovered strain that first surfaced in Mexico in April and has since swept the globe, causing relatively mild infections in most people.

The scientists discovered the new strain in a patient who had been hospitalized in Sao Paulo in April. The 26-year-old, who came down with flu symptoms after returning from Mexico, has made a full recovery, Fox News reported.

Health officials are closely monitoring the H1N1 swine flu virus as it migrates from the Northern Hemisphere to the Southern Hemisphere, where the flu season is now under way. While the swine flu doesn't yet seem any more lethal than the regular flu that each winter kills 36,000 people in the United States alone, scientists fear it could mutate as it circulates around the globe, becoming more virulent and posing a greater health threat.

 Nearly 36,000 people in 76 countries have been infected with the H1N1 virus, according to the latest figures from the World Health Organization, causing 163 deaths. The WHO last week formally declared a pandemic, triggered by the rapid spread of the H1N1 virus across North America, Australia, South America, Europe and regions beyond.

What makes the H1N1 strain different from the typical seasonal flu is that about half of the people killed worldwide were young and previously healthy. In contrast, regular forms of the seasonal flu typically prove most lethal to the very young and the elderly.

Given that trend, school children in the United States could be among the first to receive a swine flu vaccine this fall, if federal health officials decide to pursue a widespread inoculation program. Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said Tuesday that she was urging school superintendents around the country to prepare for that possibility, the Associated Press reported.

"If you think about vaccinating kids, schools are the logical place," Sebelius told the news service.

Schools do sometimes work in tandem with local health officials for special flu vaccination clinics, but it's not common.

Sebelius said she'd soon call the nation's governors to be sure "these months between now and the fall aren't used as vacation months," but to prepare for potential risks posed by the H1N1 virus, the AP said. "We can always sort of back off" if the new flu fades away, she said, "but we can't wait till October hits and say, 'Oh my heavens, what are we going to do?' "

Last week, European drug maker Novartis AG announced that it had successfully produced the first batch of H1N1 swine flu vaccine, weeks earlier than had been expected. The shortened production schedule was made possible because the vaccine was produced in cells, rather than the egg-based method typically used for vaccines, the company said.

According to the AP, Novartis said it was using this first batch for evaluation and testing, prior to its use in people, and it was also being considered for use in clinical trials. Millions of doses of the vaccine might be produced weekly, the company said. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services had already placed a $289 million order for swine flu vaccine with Novartis in May, the AP said.

The WHO said Monday that 76 countries have now reported 35,928 cases of H1N1 swine flue infection, including 163 deaths. The vast majority of those deaths -- 108 -- have occurred in Mexico, the source of the outbreak. The United States has reported 45 deaths, according to the agency.

According to WHO statistics, the last pandemic -- the Hong Kong flu of 1968 -- killed about 1 million people. By comparison, ordinary flu kills about 250,000 to 500,000 people worldwide each year.

Since the outbreak started in April, health officials in the United States have said that infections have been mild for the most part, and most people recover fairly quickly. Testing has found that the H1N1 virus remains susceptible to two common antiviral drugs, Tamiflu and Relenza.

Travelers' Diarrhea

How To Prevent Travelers' Diarrhea?

 
-- Travelers' diarrhea is a frequent menace for international travelers. The culprit may be bacteria, a virus or a parasite.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention offers these suggestions to help reduce your risk of travelers' diarrhea:

Consider The Points Follows To Prevent, 

• Don't eat or drink anything from a street vendor.
   
• Don't obtain food or drink from any facility that appears unclean.
   
• Don't eat any meat or seafood that is raw or appears undercooked.
   
• Don't eat any raw vegetables or fruit (i.e. oranges, bananas) unless you peel them yourself.
   
• Avoid tap water and ice.
   
• Avoid drinking or eating unpasteurized dairy products.
  
  

Drug Abuse-Medicine

Drug abuse has a huge range of definitions related to taking a psychoactive drug or performance enhancing drug for a non-therapeutic or non-medical effect. All of these definitions imply a negative judgment of the drug use in question (compare with the term responsible drug use for alternative views). 

Some of the drugs most often associated with this term include alcohol, amphetamines, barbiturates, benzodiazepines, cocaine, methaqualone, and opium alkaloids. Use of these drugs may lead to criminal penalty in addition to possible physical, social, and psychological harm, both strongly depending on local jurisdiction. Other definitions of drug abuse fall into four main categories: public health definitions, mass communication and vernacular usage, medical definitions, and political and criminal justice definitions.

Worldwide, the UN estimates there are more than 50 million regular users of heroin, cocaine and synthetic drugs.

Drug Abuse-Medicine

Drug abuse has a huge range of definitions related to taking a psychoactive drug or performance enhancing drug for a non-therapeutic or non-medical effect. All of these definitions imply a negative judgment of the drug use in question (compare with the term responsible drug use for alternative views). Some of the drugs most often associated with this term include alcohol, amphetamines, barbiturates, benzodiazepines, cocaine, methaqualone, and opium alkaloids. Use of these drugs may lead to criminal penalty in addition to possible physical, social, and psychological harm, both strongly depending on local jurisdiction. Other definitions of drug abuse fall into four main categories: public health definitions, mass communication and vernacular usage, medical definitions, and political and criminal justice definitions.

Worldwide, the UN estimates there are more than 50 million regular users of heroin, cocaine and synthetic drugs.

Drug addiction

Drug addiction is a pathological or abnormal condition which arises due to frequent drug use. The disorder of addiction involves the progression of acute drug use to the development of drug-seeking behavior, the vulnerability to relapse, and the decreased, slowed ability to respond to naturally rewarding stimuli.

The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition (DSM-IV) has categorized three stages of addiction: preoccupation/anticipation, binge/intoxication, and withdrawal/negative affect. These stages are characterized, respectively, everywhere by constant cravings and preoccupation with obtaining the substance; using more of the substance than necessary to experience the intoxicating effects; and experiencing tolerance, withdrawal symptoms, and decreased motivation for normal life activities. By the American Society of Addiction Medicine definition, drug addiction differs from drug dependence and drug tolerance.

It is, both among scientists and other writers, quite usual to allow the concept of drug addiction to include persons who are not drug abusers according to the definition of the American Society of Addiction Medicine. The term drug addiction is then used as a category which may include the same persons who under the DSM-IV can be given the diagnosis of substance dependence or substance abuse.

Legal definition of drugs

Some governments define the term drug by law. In the United States, the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act definition of "drug" includes "articles intended for use in the diagnosis, cure, mitigation, treatment, or prevention of disease in man or other animals" and "articles (other than food) intended to affect the structure or any function of the body of man or other animals." Consistent with that definition, the U.S. separately defines narcotic drugs and controlled substances, which may include non-drugs, and explicitly excludes tobacco, caffeine and alcoholic beverages.

Governmental controls

In Canada the government has moved to remove the influence of drug companies on the medical system.[citation needed] “The influence that the pharmaceutical companies, the for-profits, are having on every aspect of medicine ... is so blatant now you'd have to be deaf, blind and dumb not to see it,” said Journal of the American Medical Association editor Dr. Catherine DeAngelis.

Medication

A medication or medicine is a drug taken to cure and/or ameliorate any symptoms of an illness or medical condition, or may be used as preventive medicine that has future benefits but does not treat any existing or pre-existing diseases or symptoms.

Dispensing of medication is often regulated by governments into three categories—over-the-counter (OTC) medications, which are available in pharmacies and supermarkets without special restrictions, behind-the-counter (BTC), which are dispensed by a pharmacist without needing a doctor's prescription, and Prescription only medicines (POM), which must be prescribed by a licensed medical professional, usually a physician.[citation needed]

In the United Kingdom, BTC medicines are called pharmacy medicines which can only be sold in registered pharmacies, by or under the supervision of a pharmacist, these medications are designated by the letter P on the label,[8] the precise distinction between OTC and prescription drugs depends on the legal jurisdiction.[citation needed]

Medications are typically produced by pharmaceutical companies and are often patented to give the developer exclusive rights to produce them, but they can also be derived from naturally occurring substance in plants called herbal medicine.[citation needed] Those that are not patented (or with expired patents) are called generic drugs since they can be produced by other companies without restrictions or licenses from the patent holder.

Drugs, both medicinal and recreational, can be administered in a number of ways:
 

• Orally, as a liquid or solid, that is absorbed through the stomach.
•  
• Sublingually, diffusing into the blood through tissues under the tongue. 
   
• Inhaled, (breathed into the lungs), as a vapor. 
   
• Injected as a liquid either: intramuscular, intravenous, intraperitoneal, intraosseous. 
   
• Rectally as a suppository, that is absorbed by the colon. 
   
• Vaginally as a suppository, primarily to treat vaginal infections. 
   
• Bolus, a substance into the stomach to dissolve slowly. 
   
• Insufflation, or snorted into the nose. 
   
• Many drugs can be administered in a variety of ways.

Drug-Intro

A drug, broadly speaking, is any substance that, when absorbed into the body of a living organism, alters normal bodily function. There is no single, precise definition, as there are different meanings in drug control law, government regulations, medicine, and colloquial usage.

In pharmacology, a drug is "a chemical substance used in the treatment, cure, prevention, or diagnosis of disease or used to otherwise enhance physical or mental well-being." Drugs may be prescribed for a limited duration, or on a regular basis for chronic disorders.

Recreational drugs are chemical substances that affect the central nervous system, such as opioids or hallucinogens. They may be used for perceived beneficial effects on perception, consciousness, personality, and behavior. Some drugs can cause addiction and habituation.

Drugs are usually distinguished from endogenous biochemicals by being introduced from outside the organism.[citation needed] For example, insulin is a hormone that is synthesized in the body; it is called a hormone when it is synthesized by the pancreas inside the body, but if it is introduced into the body from outside, it is called a drug.[citation needed]

Many natural substances such as beers, wines, and some mushrooms, blur the line between food and drugs, as when ingested they affect the functioning of both mind and body.

Alternative Medicine

What Alternative Medicine

Literally, Alternative Medicine alternatives to "something else", this "something else" is western medicine or allopathy or orthodox medicine.

This term is used loosely to cover all forms of medicine except allopathy. In 1973, the Faculty of Medicine, University of Rome convened the first World Congress of alternative therapies, and the provisional program contained no less than 135 different therapies. Experts W.H.O. have also identified and enlisted more than 100 types of practices and cried as traditional medicines.

These forms of medicine are known as traditional medicine (as most of them have been practiced since time immemorial), complementary medicine (such as drugs, allopathic medicine, complementary in many instances-a-) (if different from orthodox medicine), holistic medicine (the Most of alternative medicine consider the human body as a whole being including physical, mental, social and spiritual), ethnic medicine (including traditional systems of health care are closely associated with living and mass culture), natural medicine (such as methods of treatment based on the laws of nature and natural materials are used to treat patients).

There are more than 100 systems in the practice of alternative medicine is still the world. Each country, region or area has its own traditional system of health and medical care, as it is for Chinese acupuncture, French, magnetic healing, for the Germans, Heil Praxis, in English - Phytotherapy for India - Ayurveda, because Islamic countries -- Unani and the southern part of the country - Siddha, for Japan - Shiatsu, etc.

The most popular forms of alternative medicine Ayurveda, Homeopathy, Unani, Siddha, naturopathy, yoga therapy, acupuncture, acupressure, magnetic therapy, shiatsu, herbal medicine, meditation, aromatherapy, Bach Flowers Gem therapy, color therapy, hydrotherapy, Diet Therapy and Reiki.