FLUPIRTINE: A MINI REVIEW

Pain is the oldest medical problem of human, yet it has been little understood in physiology until very recently. Persistent, unremitting pain may adversely affect the body’s endocrine, cardiovascular, immune, neurologic and musculo-skeletal systems and require aggressive treatment of the pain as well as its complications. It can significantly interfere with a person's quality of life and general functioning. So, treatment of this sensation is a challenge for clinicians. Flupirtine is a novel, centrally acting, non-opioid and non NSAID analgesic agent, and is devoid of common adverse effects seen with NSAIDs and opioids. It was first synthesized and used in Europe although it is not yet approved by United States Food and Drug Administration (USFDA). It acts as a selective neuronal potassium channel opener and has indirect N-methyl-d-aspartate (NMDA) receptor antagonist properties. In addition to analgesic action, it has also muscle relaxant, antioxidant, neuroprotective and antiparkinsonian effects. It is presently under phase II clinical trials for fibromyalgia. Evidence of flupirtine's efficacy from clinical trials and well-established use in European countries for more than 25 years suggests that it has a unique and important place in pain management. Despite its broad spectrum action, it is among such drugs which were not popular worldwide for a long time because  they were not approved by USFDA. Key Words: Pain, Flupirtine, Selective neuronal potassium channel openers, Neuroprotective, Antioxidant

Antimicrobial susceptibility pattern of pus culture in a tertiary care hospital of Jharkhand, India

Background: Antimicrobial resistance is developing day by day leading to increase not only in health care cost but also severity and death rate from certain infection that could have been avoided by rational use of existing and new antimicrobial agents. Present study is undertaken for this purpose to analyse the types of pathogens involved and their antibiotic sensitivity isolated from pus culture reports in a tertiary care hospital.Methods: Observational study was conducted using pus culture and sensitivity reports collected retrospectively from the records maintained in the Department of Microbiology over a period of 5 months from August 2016 to December 2016 in tertiary care hospital.Results: 85 percent pus samples were found culture positive of which microorganism isolated in decreasing order were Staphylococcus aureus, Pseudomonas, Klebsella and E. coli. Staphylococcus aureus was sensitive to fixed drug combination of piperacillin with tazobactam, linezolid, ceftriaxone with sulbactum, levofloxacillin and ciprofloxacin and resistance to cefotaxime, cloxacillin and ampicillin. Pseudomonas was highly sensitive to fixed drug combination of cefoperazone with sulbactum, piperacillin with tazobactum, ceftriaxone with sulbactum and resistance to cloxacillin and cefotaxime. Klebsiella showed high sensitivity to piperacillin with tazobactum, cefoperazone with sulbactum, ceftriaxone with sulbactum and was found resistant with norfloxacin and amoxycillin. E. coli showed high sensitivity in decreasing order with amikacin and gentamycin and resistance in increasing order with cefotaxime, cloxacillin, ampicillin and norfloxacin.Conclusions: The sensitivity patterns were different for each isolated microorganism but high sensitivity was found with fixed antimicrobial drug combination and resistance to frequently used drugs

Effect of telmisartan on hypertensive dementia patients: an observational study

Background: This was a prospective observational study done to observe the effects of telmisartan on cognitive function in hypertensive dementia patients.Methods: The study included new diagnosed hypertensive and normotensive dementia patients. Patients comprised of four groups; hypertensive dementia patients taking telmisartan (group 1), hypertensive dementia patients taking donepezil and telmisartan (group 2), normotensive dementia patients taking donepezil (group 3) and normotensive dementia patients taking drugs which does not affect memory (group 4).Cognitive function of four groups were compared to each other at 4, 8 and 12 weeks.Results: In group 1, 2 and 3 mini-mental state examination (MMSE) scores has increased by 1.69, 16.81, and 13.28 percent and in group 4 there is decrease in MMSE score by 6.03 percent in 12 weeks.Conclusions: In this study we can conclude that telmisartan has dementia preventing propensity which is better than placebo but not as good as donepezil