The US Food and Drug Administration recently approved a new formulation of intravenous (IV) acetaminophen for children at least 2 years of age. This drug has been widely used outside of the United States, with more than 500 million doses administered worldwide since 2002. However, the current review describes a [...]

Nutritional supplements are commonly thought to bestow health benefits to their users.  The market for these supplements is enormous and profits for the companies that produce these products are high.  These days, it is not uncommon for some people to take 20, 30, or 40 pills a day of various [...]

A recent report based on a series of studies suggests that acetominopen might contribute to the development of childhood asthma.  Obviously, this is a major discovery as acetominopen is the most popular anti-pyretic and anti-analgesic in the pediatric population.  You can read the full New York Times report by Clicking Here

The latest craze amongst kids is energy drinks.  These drinks have high levels of caffeine.  When combined with other stimulants or alcohol or other illicit drugs, they become toxic, and have resulted in a surge of emergency room visits; in some cases death has resulted. The following news release points [...]

Darvon, generic name propoxyphene, is no longer.  Several months ago, the FDA pulled it from the market.  Some have called propoxyphene the worst drug in history.  Read more to see why: Physicians Say Good Riddance to 'Worst Drug in History' February 2, 2011 — An estimated 10 million patients have [...]

Over the past 30 years the EPA and CDC have lowered the level of blood lead that has been considered acceptable based on newer and more sophisticated scientific studies demonstrating adverse health effects at lower and lower blood lead levels.  Now for the first time in 20 years a federal [...]

Dronedarone, brand name Multaq, is an increasingly popular anti-arrythmic drug used by cardiologists and critical care physicians.  The FDA has recently determined that this drug is dangerous in a certain subset of patients.  Death has been reported in patients who have chronic atrial fibrillation.  To see the full news report [...]

Medical malpractice lawsuits frequently arise because of misundertandings, poor communication, and the reactive emotions that naturally follow. When patients become angry, they are apt to escalate the situation, magnify the problems or bad outcomes, and become predisposed to blaming the doctor or the hospital. Much litigation can be avoided if [...]

The following article is from a recent issue of Medscape. Vitamin supplements are ubiquitous and are commonly taking by people who want to be health conscious and maximally healthy. But not all vitamins and minerals are benign. The Medscape summarizes a recent study in the Archives of Internal Medicine. The [...]

Recently the DEA took emergency action to ban for one year bath salts that are composed of PABS, methylenedioxypyrovalerone, which is structurally and toxicologically related to pyrovalerone and a-pyrrolidinophenone compounds that inhibit norepinephrine-dopamine reuptake and act as central nervous system stimulants.  These salts are deadly, and are sold under the [...]

Can you imagine a vaccine that would eliminate smoking, cocaine, methamphetamine, heroin or opiate use?  Researchers are tantalizingly close to developing a vaccine that would permanently block those receptors that when stimulated by these and other substances of abuse provide the addictive euphoric and mind-altering effects. Addicts would no longer [...]

The Food and Drug Administration on Wednesday announced new safety restrictions on high-dose simvastatin, also known as Zocor, a cholesterol-lowering drug taken by an estimated 2.1 million Americans. The agency said the 80-milligram dose caused a potentially severe muscle disease, called myopathy, especially in the first year of taking the [...]

Several states are considering new legislation that will make decongestants prescription medication requiring a doctor's signature.  The main ingredient of these medications is pseudoephedrine, an essential ingredient in the production of Methamphetamine.  In one state alone, Tennessee, police shut down over 2000 Methamphetamine labs last year, about a 50% increase [...]

Normally, I would put information like this in my "Latest News" section, but this is too important not to be on my front page where my blog is located. Terbutaline, given orally or intravenously, is routinely used to treat preterm labor.  It has now been shown to significantly increase the [...]

Toxicologists when reviewing cases are often faced with a subject in question that had altered mental status as a consequence of the effects of illicit substances.  In this setting, dealing with aggressive patients can make a big difference in outcome. Patient death or injury resulting from the use of restraint [...]