February 2012 Drug Update Information - Pharmacy Benefits ...

Source website: http: ://www.bloomberg.com/
Painkiller 10 times stronger than Vicodin worries addiction experts
December 26, 2011
As pharmaceutical companies are
approaching the final stages of development for a new type of
painkiller
said to be 10 times stronger than Vicodin, addiction experts worry a new wave of
abuse may soon follow. Four companies have begun patient testing on the pills which contain a
pure version of the highly addictive painkiller hydrocodone, and one
of them - Zogenix of San
Diego - plans to apply early next
year to begin marketingg its product, Zohydro.
Article link: http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-504763_162-57348477-10391704/painkiller-10-
timesstronger-than-vicodin-worries-addiction-experts/
Source website: http: ://www.cbsnews.com/
Adding Lovenox Didn't Reducee Blood Clot Death Risk in Study
December 28, 2011
Severely ill hospital patients are at high risk for developing potentially fatal blood clots, and
often wear compression stockings and/or take blood thinners to help lower this risk. However,
adding the blood thinner Lovenox (enoxaparin) to the mix does not reduce their chances of dying
from a blood clot, according to research appearing in thee Dec. 29 issue of the New England
Journal of Medicine.
Article link: http://news.yahoo.com/ adding-lovenox-didnt-reduce-blood-clot-death-risk-
220408913.html
Source website: http: ://news.yahoo.com/
Avastin disappointss against ovarian cancer
December 28, 2011
Avastin, the blockbuster drug that just lost approval for treating breast cancer, now looks
disappointing against
ovarian cancer, too. Two studies found it did not improve survival for most
of these patients and kept their disease from worsening for only a few
months, with more side
effects.
Article link: http://www.businessweek.com/ap/financialnews/D9RTQ2081.htm
Source website: http: ://www.businessweek.com/
FDA warns docs on
wart remover and eyee salve mix-ups
December 28, 2011
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration warned healthcare workers on Wednesday to be careful
when using two similarly named but very different drugs, saying a recent mix-up
involving the
two medications had injured a patient. The agency said the incident occurred when a pharmacist
confused
Durasal, a wart remover not approved by the FDA, with Durezol, an FDA-approved
steroidal eyedrop used to treat inflammation
and pain following eye surgery.
Article link: http://www.courant.
.com/health/sns-rt-us-drug-name-mixuptre7br12w-
20111228,0,5878740.story
Source website: http: ://www.courant.com/
Janssen Research & Development Submits Application to U.S. FDA for XARELTO
(rivaroxaban) to Reduce Secondary Cardiovascular Events in Patients with Acute
Coronary Syndrome
December 28, 2011
Janssen Research & Developmen
nt announced
today that it has submitted a supplemental New
Drug Application (sNDA) to the U.S.Food and Drug Administrationn (FDA) seeking approval for
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