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Healthcare online Keeping you up-to-date
VOL.  9     ISSUE:  1    2011 Medical Services Department

SQUARE Pharmaceuticals Ltd.

Features

EDITORIAL TEAM

OMAR AKRAMUR RAB

MBBS, FCGP, FIAGP,

P G Dip. Business Management

A. S. M. Shawkat Ali

MBBS, M. Phil

MAHFUZUR RAHMAN

 MBBS, MBA

 

EDITORIAL

Dear Doctor,

Welcome back to e- SQUARE.

In this issue, we focused on some interesting features like -
"Risks For ADHD !", "Human Brain Map !", "Calcium & Heart Health !", "Central Line Dialysis & Death !",
 "Brain Aneurysm !", "Winter & Postpartum Depression !".

In our regular feature, we have some new products information of SQUARE Pharmaceuticals Ltd. as well.

Please send your feedback !  We always value your comments !

On behalf of the management of SQUARE, we wish you all a very happy, healthy and prosperous life.

Click on to reply mode.

Yours sincerely,

 

Editorial Team

Reply Mode      : e-square@squaregroup.com

The views expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect those of its editor or SQUARE Pharmaceuticals Ltd.
 Risks For ADHD !

 Birth Even a Few Weeks Early May Raise Odds for ADHD

A new study suggests that risk of development of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) will high among children with every week they are born short of full term. Earlier studies have also shown same association between a too-early birth and the increased risk for ADHD. Risk for ADHD is 40 to 60 percent higher in babies born moderately preterm. Even in babies born in the early term period at 37-38 weeks, the risk is 20 percent higher. The researchers found that the earlier the birth, the greater would the odds for ADHD. The uptick in risk ranged from between 10 to 20 percent for children born at 37 to 38 weeks of gestation, to 40 percent for those born at 33 and 34 weeks and 60 percent for those born at 29 to 32 weeks of gestation. Children born very preterm 23 to 28 weeks had double the odds of a full-term baby of developing ADHD. These findings argue very strongly against elective caesarian surgery, which is going on like crazy now a day. There are neurological issues, developmental issues, cognitive issues and now there are behavioral issues. To minimize the risk for ADHD, these births should be planned as close to the full term date that is, week 40 as possible. This underlines the fact that preterm birth carries significant risks and needs to be given more attention in neonatal care and in follow-up within health care systems. Women should not have caesarian delivery unless there is clear medical indication.

SOURCE: HealthDay News, April 2011

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 Human Brain Map !

Scientists Complete Detailed Map of Human Brain

The world's first anatomically and genetically detailed map of the human brain has been completed by U.S. scientists, who said their achievement might lead to new treatments for a number of brain diseases. The mappings of two normal adult human brains revealed a 94 percent similarity between human brains and also showed that at least 82 percent of all human genes are expressed in the brain. The findings identifies 1,000 anatomical sites in the human brain, along with more than 100 million data points that indicate the particular gene expression and underlying biochemistry of each site. Researchers will be able to use this discovery in a number of ways, including examining how disease and injury affect specific areas of the brain. They'll also be able to pinpoint where a drug acts in the brain, which could help improve outcomes for a number of therapies. Until now, a definitive map of the human brain, at this level of detail, simply hasn't existed. The atlas provides never-before-seen views into our most complex and most important organ. Understanding how our genes are used in our brains will help scientists and the medical community better understand and discover new treatments for the full spectrum of brain diseases and disorders from mental illness and drug addiction, to Alzheimer's and Parkinson's diseases, multiple sclerosis, autism and more.  

SOURCE: HealthDay News, April 2011

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 Calcium & Heart Health !

Women Taking Calcium Supplements May Risk Heart Health

More evidence is emerging that women who take calcium supplements to prevent bone deterioration may in fact, be risking their heart health. Many older women take calcium supplements with or without vitamin D to keep their bones strong. A recent meta-analysis done by a group of researchers and found a 27 to 31 percent increased risk of heart attacks in women taking calcium without vitamin D. For this analysis, the authors looked 16,718 women who had not been taking personal calcium supplements before entering the trial. In this case, women who were randomized to take calcium and vitamin D as part of the study protocol had a modest 13 to 22 percent increased risk of cardiovascular problems, particularly heart attacks. Women in the control arm had no change in risk. The authors speculate that an increased risk could be biologically plausible given that calcium is connected with hardening of the arteries. There is a lack of consensus at the present time as to what recommendations should be regarding the use of calcium supplements. Their recommendation is to critically review the use of calcium supplements, since the data in this paper suggests that they do more harm than good. People should be encouraged to obtain their calcium from the diet, rather than from supplements, since food calcium has not been shown to carry this increased risk of heart disease. Authors urge further studies, getting calcium from food instead of pills.

SOURCE: HealthDay News, April 2011

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  Central Line Dialysis & Death !

Higher Death Rates Seen in Central Line Dialysis Patients: Study

Doctors should avoid delivering hemodialysis to kidney failure patients through a central line catheter because that method is associated with a higher risk of death shortly after beginning dialysis, a new study contends. Researchers examined the medical records of more than 38,500 Canadian patients who began dialysis from 2001-08. Patients who received hemodialysis through a central line catheter into a large vein had an 80 percent higher risk of death in the first year after starting dialysis than patients who received: Peritoneal dialysis, Dialysis through an arteriovenous fistula, Dialysis through an arteriovenous graft. Both the surgically created fistula and graft access sites are at less risk of infection than a central line, with a fistula least likely to become infected, the study authors said. Among central line patients, the risk of death was 20 percent higher five years after dialysis began than in the others. The researchers cautioned that the study was observational, not a randomized controlled trial, and that there was no information on the reasons why patients started dialysis with a central catheter vs. the other methods. Prior research has also suggested that peritoneal patients have a lower risk of death.  
SOURCE: HealthDay News, April 2011

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 Brain Aneurysm !

New Treatment for Large Brain Aneurysm

A new option to repair a difficult-to-manage bulging artery in the brain has been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Such a bulge, called an aneurysm, can grow and eventually burst. This can lead to a brain hemorrhage and even death. Aneurysms larger than 10 millimeters or those of an odd shape, often are difficult to treat. The cPAX Aneurysm Treatment System uses a special polymer to line the artery around the aneurysm, reducing the risk of rupture, the FDA said in a news release. The system was evaluated in small pair of clinical studies involving 43 people. The cPAX system was approved for people 22 and older. It shouldn't be used in people with an active infection or among those who can't undergo anti-clotting therapy.
SOURCE: HealthDay News, April 2011

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 Winter & Postpartum Depression !

Winter May be Linked to Postpartum Depression

A new study suggests that women who give birth in fall and winter may be more likely to get postpartum depression than those who deliver in the spring. Researchers’ note that compared to most countries, Sweden has a much bigger difference in its amount of daylight in winter versus summer. For that reason, the effect of the seasons on rates of postpartum depression might be more obvious there. Women who give birth in the colder, darker months should be watched more closely for symptoms of depression. After accounting for a variety of factors it was found that women who gave birth in October through December were about twice as likely to have symptoms of postpartum depression as those who had children in April through June. Though the exact link is still unexplained, but it was thought that changes in the amount of daylight during each season may affect chemical pathways in the brain related to depression said the author. During the winter there's very little sunlight in Sweden, so a lack of vitamin D could be playing a role. Depression that happens only in fall and winter - known as Seasonal Affective Disorder, or SAD - has been observed in the general population. Researcher noted that the effects of season on depression were most noticeable in healthy women who had no mental illnesses before giving birth. 
SOURCE: Reuters Health, April 2011

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New Products of SQUARE Pharmaceuticals Ltd.
  Product Valoate® 
  Generic Name Sodium Valproate + Valproic Acid
  Strength 200 mg, 300 mg, 500 mg, 200 mg/5 ml
  Dosage form Controlled Release Tablet & Syrup
  Therapeutic Category Antiepileptic
  Product Butefin®
Generic Name

Butenafine HCL
Strength 1%
Dosage form Cream
Therapeutic Category Fungicide
  Product Laciten®
  Generic Name Lacidipine
  Strength 2 mg, 4 mg
  Dosage form Tablet
  Therapeutic Category Calcium Antagonist

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