By Lynne Peeples at Reuters Health NEW YORK (Reuters Health) – A handheld tool that provides diabetics with automated feedback -- fromaverage blood sugar levels to early signs of a treatment's side effects -- may help certain patients better manage the disease, hints a new study. Researchers from the University of Virginia, Charlottesville, concluded that the biofeedback system could make it easier to walk the fine line between controlling blood sugar levels in order to minimize the condition's chronic complications and risking those levels falling too low, a state called hypoglycemia. Although such episodes can ...Read More »

By William C. Gong, PharmD at Medscape Previous guidelines recommended low-dose aspirin therapy for the primary prevention of stroke in patients with type 1 or type 2 diabetes mellitus who were at increased cardiovascular (CV) risk. Risk factors included patient age older than 40 years, a family history of CV disease, hypertension, smoking, dyslipidemia, or albuminuria. Aspirin therapy was not recommended for patients younger than 30 years of age because no benefit had been demonstrated, and aspirin was contraindicated in patients under 21 years of age because of associated risk for Reye syndrome.[1] Since the Antithrombotic Trialists' Collaboration (ATT-C) ...Read More »

By John F. Peppin, DO at Medscape Chronic Neuropathic Pain Chronic pain is not just a problem of incidence and pathophysiology; it is one of unique individual suffering. Chronic neuropathic pain (CNP) causes untoward amounts of suffering, and costs millions of dollars a year in lost work and healthcare costs. In terms of physiology, neuropathic pain is described by the International Association for the Study of Pain as, "pain initiated or caused by a primary lesion or dysfunction in the nervous system,[1]" and has an annual incidence of 1% in the general population. Treatments for CNP Unfortunately, our current treatments for ...Read More »

By William F. Balistreri, MD at Medscape Question: Does therapeutic dosing of acetaminophen in children pose a risk for liver injury? Response from William F. Balistreri, MD Dorothy M. M. Kersten Professor of Pediatrics, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine; Medical Director, Liver Transplantation Program, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, Ohio Acute hepatotoxicity as a result of acetaminophen overdose in children is well known and is most often the result of "therapeutic misadventure" -- when the administered dose exceeds the weight-based recommended dose.[1] In 2009, the US Food and Drug Administration held an advisory ...Read More »

By Laurie Barclay, MD at Medscape January 12, 2011 — The common practice of tablet splitting is a highly inaccurate and potentially dangerous practice, resulting in large dose deviations, according to the results of a study reported in the January issue of the Journal of Advanced Nursing. "Tablet-splitting is widespread in all healthcare sectors and a primary care study in Germany found that just under a quarter of all drugs were split," lead study author Charlotte Verrue, PharmD, PhD, from the Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences at Ghent University in Belgium, said in a news release. "It is done for ...Read More »

From By Theresa Flaherty at HME News BALTIMORE - CMS won't enforce its ban on direct solicitation of beneficiaries for now, officials told listeners during last Wednesday's Open Door Forum. "Unanticipated issues have arisen regarding the implementation of the newly expanded portion of the provision," said John Spiegel, director of the Medicare Program Integrity Group, during the call. "CMS feels further investigation is necessary to determine the best way to apply these changes." The Office of Inspector General (OIG) created some confusion early in 2010 when it issued an alert that stated providers may not contact beneficiaries "based solely ...Read More »

Stress can be defined as the thoughts, feelings, behavioral and physiological changes that occur when the demands placed upon us exceed our perceived ability to cope. In other words, everyone experiences stress at some time, but how you deal with it can impact your quality of life. The following coping skills and lifestyle methods can help to prevent stress from taking a negative toll on your daily and long-term physical and mental health. Regular Exercise Exercise is one of the most effective stress management strategies. Aerobic activities such as jogging,swimming, kickboxing, or biking can help to relieve pressure and help clear your mind. ...Read More »

Irritable Bowel Syndrome is the most commonly diagnosed gastrointestinal condition and is second only to the common cold as a cause of absence from work. An estimated 10 to 20 percent of people in the general population experience symptoms of IBS, although only about 15 percent of affected people actually seek medical help. The most common symptom of IBS is pain or discomfort in the abdomen. This may be associated with stomach cramps. The pain ranges from mild to severe, and may be made better by opening the bowels or passing wind. It is often made worse by eating. Pain may occur at ...Read More »

What should my blood sugar be?? You and your doctor will determine what your target blood sugar levels should be after some testing and properly answered questions about your diet, exercise, and any medications you are on. For people without Diabetes, according to many doctors and experts, blood sugar levels should be: Between 70 and 120 mg/ dL For people with Type 2 Diabetes: [checklist] Fasting (not eating for a suggested period of time): up to 130 mg/dL After most meals: less than 200 mg/dL [/checklist] Why should I check my blood sugar? Learning how to monitor your own blood sugar levels with a meter is ...Read More »

Another advantage to using FHP as your house pharmacy is the fact they can pull crystal reports for anything to do with medication.  For example, if you need to know how many anti-psychotic meds are given during the 8am med pass, FHP can do that.  If you need to know how many CII’s (narcotics) your facility uses on a monthly basis, FHP can provide that as well.  How many Vitamins per med-pass, how many blood pressure meds are passed weekly, how many stomach meds per day.  The list goes on and on.  FHP can also give you monthly censuses on ...Read More »