ppp 02-20-06

Quote of the day: Typos are very important to all written form. It gives the reader something to look for so they aren't distracted by the total lack of content in your writing. Randy K. Milholland, Something Positive Comic, 07-03-05

Have I made a few typographical errors along the way? HAVE I! "You" and "your" are quite common for the non-typer in me to interchange. (In high school I took Calculus instead of Typing and have paid the price since). Turning off the lights would have the same effect as unplugging the keyboard or changing the font to webdings..

What are the most common mistakes made by the rest of you? The use of TWO SPACES after a period and before the start of another sentence is very common. For a list see http://www.aeonix.com/comntypo.htm . The Wikipedia distinguishes unintended slips of the fingers from ignorance. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Typographical_error "Typo" is often a euphemism for poor grammar, spelling, and punctuation. I heard a marketer once advise a group of students to purposefully insert a few non-fatal typos in any newsletter that they published. It, in his estimation, made the information seem "fresher and more immediate" and leave the reader with the impression that they could not possibly be getting the information any faster.

Will you find additional "typos" in future editions of "the Prattle"? Yes! I'll keep the PPP current and fresh but for the most part, you won't know if typos were intentional or not! (wild maniacal laughter!)

ps. Best answer this week to the question "How are you?" was "Practically perfect in every way" (Mary Poppins)

pps. Occasionally, some of the links require FREE registration.... I'm sure you can handle THAT slight inconvenience.

Smokers absorb more insulin from inhaled forms of the drug than non-smokers. This is mostly a concern for people who are changing there smoking habits. Will bee to re-titrate if you start or stop. (If you have diabetes then you are already at risk for heart disease…. why take the chance of adding cigarettes?)

Last week we reported on a study that claimed no benefits from a low fat diet and this week another "known" falls. Supplementation with calcium and vitamin D don't protect women from fractures. (A reduction in risk of hip fracture was shown, so experts are still backing the use.) That is the thing about evidence-based medicine… you have to be ready to let go of your former "knowns".

Use of H2 antagonists to reduced stomach acid in premature infants is associated with a potentially fatal bowel condition. The intestinal tissue dies and results in perforation, infection and death. (More of that "evidence stuff".)

I have made assertions that BLACK BOX warnings are largely ignored by physicians. This has now been studied. Study showed that about 1% of a subset of drugs were prescribed AGAINST the black box warnings. I'll have to pull the main article and see for myself. (I do know that it was a retrospective study but do not know the rest of the particulars of the design) http://archinte.ama-assn.org/cgi/content/short/166/3/338

As more people buy prescription drugs from outside of the US borders, more are being seized by customs. AARP did a comparison of costs against the Part-D benefit and found that "Canadian" drugs were MORE expensive. Another myth falls!

Radio frequency identification (RFID) has been stalled. Looks like only about 10 drugs will get them in 2006. Not surprisingly; the high dollar and highly counterfeited ones will be first. http://www.eweek.com/article2/0,1895,1925510,00.asp

Someone put a cell phone into a pill bottle enclosure so that the bottle will call you if it was not opened in time for the medicine dose. Sounds good in theory but many seniors take more than 6 pills a day; and at multiple times. A missed time would trigger multiple calls. They would be answering the phone so much that they would not have time to actually take any pills. Better (and cheaper) to program the times into your cell phone or Outlook and get reminders that way. (the device, programming, roaming charges, minutes, etc.)

Disclaimer: "Pepin's Pharmaceutical Prattle" (AKA "The Prattle") is the property of PHARMWORKS, LLC and Steven M. Pepin, Pharm. D, BCPS. The opinions expressed are those of the bald-headed author. To start or stop any drug without the advice and supervision of your physician would be stupid. So don't do anything based upon what you read here without professional advice. To be added to or removed from the distribution list please e-mail your request to spepin@pharmworks.com . All insightful comments from readers are thoughtfully considered (the rest are callously discarded). Copyright 1998-2006 PHARMWORKS, LLC all rights reserved.

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