Drug Topics - February 11, 2008 - (Page 10) 10 DRUG TOPICS FEBRUARY 11, 2008 www.drugtopics.com Latebreakers nation with a statin for the reduction of elevated LDL-C in patients with primary hyperlipidemia. Colesevelam is the first drug to be approved to treat both conditions. opathic medicine offers concerned parents a safe alternative. trope launched last January. The Princeton, N.J., firm claims that Omnitrope is the first follow-on biologic approved by the Food & Drug Administration. Wal-Mart enters PBM fray As if there aren’t enough pharmacy benefit managers in the market, Wal-Mart Stores has announced that it plans to get into the business. The announcement was made in a speech that Wal-Mart CEO Lee Scott made to 7,000 of its store managers in Kansas City, Mo., recently. Analysts note that the major PBMs, such as CVS Caremark, Medco, and Express Scripts, have been losing a lot of their business to small, regional PBMs lately, but they believe Wal-Mart will probably do all right in its new venture. They think the pressure on retail chains to enter this side of the business is prompted in part by Medicare Part D, which has taken away many of their remaining cash-only customers. FDA’s decision on cough and cold OTCs for kids draws support The Consumer Healthcare Products Association (CHPA) offered its support for FDA’s decision against the use of oral OTC cough and cold medicines in children under the age of two, stating, “Safety has always been and continues to be our top priority. Last fall, the leading makers of OTC, oral cough and cold medicines for infants voluntarily withdrew these medicines out of concern that their potential misuse could lead to possible overdose among very young children….. Today’s decision by FDA reaffirms the correct course of action taken by the leading makers of these medicines last fall.” Wyeth Consumer Healthcare also supports FDA’s action, stating, “This decision is consistent with our voluntary removal in October 2007 of over-the-counter infant cough and cold products from the global market to help reduce dosing errors and overdoses in children who are most vulnerable to misuse of these medicines.” Meanwhile homeopathic manufacturers didn’t waste time stating that their home- Antifungal approved for new indication Astellas Pharma’s Mycamine (micafungin sodium) for Injection has gained a new indication: to treat patients with candidemia, acute disseminated candidiasis, candida peritonitis and abscesses. The antifungal was approved in 2005 to treat esophageal candidiasis and is the only echinocandin approved for the prophylaxis of Candida infections in patients undergoing hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. Candidemia is the fourth most common bloodstream infection among hospitalized patients in this country. DT New recombinant injection approved for growth failure Another new treatment will be available shortly for children with growth failure and adults with growth hormone deficiency. It’s Sandoz’s Omnitrope Pen 5 (somatropin) with liquid cartridge in 5mg strength. The injection is a recombinant biologic. It follows a lyophilized powder form of Omni- Four R.Ph.s win pharmacy history contest Out of more than 700 entries to Drug Topics’ pharmacy history contest in connection with our 150th anniversary, four pharmacists have been randomly chosen as the lucky winners. They are Tamme Booth of Folsom, Calif., Hyon Kim of Fairfax, Va., Kerry Mizuno of Honolulu, and Helen Moon of Garfield Heights, Ohio. They each won a gift card of $250. EDITORIAL ADVISORY BOARD MEMBERS Philip P. Burgess, R.Ph., M.B.A. Mary E. Inguanti, R.Ph., M.P.H. National Director, Pharmacy Affairs Walgreen Co. Deerfield, Ill. Perry Cohen, Pharm.D., FAMCP Vice President of Operations Saint Francis Hospital and Medical Center Hartford, Conn. James A. Jorgenson, R.Ph., M.S., FASHP The Pharmacy Group LLC Glastonbury, Conn. David J. Fong, Pharm.D. Senior Vice President Pharmacy & Family Care Safeway Inc. Pleasanton, Calif. Director of Pharmacy Services University of Utah Hospitals & Clinics Associate Dean for Clinical Education University of Utah College of Pharmacy Salt Lake City, Utah Dennis Burton, B.S.Pharm., MBA Jack Rosenberg, Pharm.D., Ph.D. Professor and Director of InterVice President national Specialty Pharmacy Services Drug Information Center Specialty Scripts Pharmacy Arnold & Marie Schwartz Fall River, Mass. College of Pharmacy & Health Frederick S. Mayer, R.Ph., M.P.H. Sciences President Long Island University Pharmacists Planning Service Inc. Brooklyn, N.Y. San Rafael, Calif. Stephen W. Schondelmeyer, Gene Memoli Jr., R.Ph., FASCP Director of Customer Development Pharm.D., Ph.D. Omnicare Cheshire, Conn. Director, PRIME Institute College of Pharmacy University of Minnesota Minneapolis, Minn. http://www.drugtopics.com
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