156 research outputs found

    The role of inhaled loxapine in the treatment of acute agitation in patients with psychiatric disorders: A clinical review

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    Loxapine is a first generation antipsychotic, belonging to the dibenzoxazepine class. Recently, loxapine has been reformulated at a lower dose, producing an inhaled powder that can be directly administered to the lungs to treat the agitation associated with psychiatric disorders, such as schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. Thus, the aim of this narrative and clinical mini-review was to evaluate the efficacy and tolerability of inhaled loxapine in the treatment of acute agitation in patients with psychiatric disorders. The efficacy of inhaled loxapine has been evaluated in one Phase II trial on patients with schizophrenia, and in two Phase III trials in patients with schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. Moreover, there are two published case series on patients with borderline personality disorder and dual diagnosis patients. Inhaled loxapine has proven to be effective and generally well tolerated when administered to agitated patients with schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. Two case series have suggested that inhaled loxapine may also be useful to treat agitation in patients with borderline personality disorder and with dual diagnosis, but further studies are needed to clarify this point. However, the administration of inhaled loxapine requires at least some kind of patient collaboration, and is not recommended in the treatment of severe agitation in totally uncooperative patients. Moreover, the drug-related risk of bronchospasm must always be kept in mind when planning to use inhaled loxapine, leading to a careful patient assessment prior to, and after, administration. Also, the higher costs of inhaled loxapine, when compared to oral and intramuscular medications, should be taken into account when selecting it for the treatment of agitation

    Effects of Anacetrapib in Patients with Atherosclerotic Vascular Disease

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    BACKGROUND: Patients with atherosclerotic vascular disease remain at high risk for cardiovascular events despite effective statin-based treatment of low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol levels. The inhibition of cholesteryl ester transfer protein (CETP) by anacetrapib reduces LDL cholesterol levels and increases high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol levels. However, trials of other CETP inhibitors have shown neutral or adverse effects on cardiovascular outcomes. METHODS: We conducted a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial involving 30,449 adults with atherosclerotic vascular disease who were receiving intensive atorvastatin therapy and who had a mean LDL cholesterol level of 61 mg per deciliter (1.58 mmol per liter), a mean non-HDL cholesterol level of 92 mg per deciliter (2.38 mmol per liter), and a mean HDL cholesterol level of 40 mg per deciliter (1.03 mmol per liter). The patients were assigned to receive either 100 mg of anacetrapib once daily (15,225 patients) or matching placebo (15,224 patients). The primary outcome was the first major coronary event, a composite of coronary death, myocardial infarction, or coronary revascularization. RESULTS: During the median follow-up period of 4.1 years, the primary outcome occurred in significantly fewer patients in the anacetrapib group than in the placebo group (1640 of 15,225 patients [10.8%] vs. 1803 of 15,224 patients [11.8%]; rate ratio, 0.91; 95% confidence interval, 0.85 to 0.97; P=0.004). The relative difference in risk was similar across multiple prespecified subgroups. At the trial midpoint, the mean level of HDL cholesterol was higher by 43 mg per deciliter (1.12 mmol per liter) in the anacetrapib group than in the placebo group (a relative difference of 104%), and the mean level of non-HDL cholesterol was lower by 17 mg per deciliter (0.44 mmol per liter), a relative difference of -18%. There were no significant between-group differences in the risk of death, cancer, or other serious adverse events. CONCLUSIONS: Among patients with atherosclerotic vascular disease who were receiving intensive statin therapy, the use of anacetrapib resulted in a lower incidence of major coronary events than the use of placebo. (Funded by Merck and others; Current Controlled Trials number, ISRCTN48678192 ; ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT01252953 ; and EudraCT number, 2010-023467-18 .)
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