1. Megan Shah, PharmD Candidate Cone Health Family Medicine
News You Can Use…
Pete Koval, PharmD
Megan Shah, PharmD Candidate
Cone Health Family Medicine
July 2015

2. Drug Launched Risedronate, generic for Actonel, is now available
Risedronate is used for the treatment and prevention of osteoporosis and treatment of Paget’s disease.
Available as 5 mg, 30 mg, and 35 mg tablets
06/2/2015 Pharmacy Times

3. Trial Review
IMPROVE-IT trial shows cardiac benefit of adding ezetimibe 10 mg to simvastatin 40 mg after ACS
Simvastatin/ezetimibe reduced CV events by ~7% vs. simvastatin monotherapy (NNT=50)
Baseline LDL of 94 mg/dl was reduced to 54 g/dl with simvastatin/ezetimibe and 70 mg/dl with simvastatin alone.
06/4/2015 N Engl J Med

4. Pharmacy Business CVS Health bought Target pharmacies and clinics
Target pharmacies will operate under CVS name inside Target stores.
Target clinics will be rebranded as MinuteClinic
06/15/2015 NY Times

5. New Indication
Zomig (zolmitriptan) nasal spray has been FDA approved for treatment of migraines with or without aura in pediatric patients >12 years of age
Previously was only indicated for age >18.
Starting dose for pediatric patients is 2.5 mg daily with a max dose of 10 mg daily.
06/16/2015 Medscape

6. New Drug Approval
Kengreal (cangrelor) gained FDA approval to prevent blood clots in patients undergoing PCI
Intravenous antiplatelet drug (P2Y12 inhibitor)
Administered as a 30 mcg/kg bolus injection, followed by a 4 mcg/kg/min infusion for 2 to 4 hours.
06/22/2015 FDA.gov

7. FDA Warning
FDA issued a warning of permanent loss of skin color for Daytrana (methylphenidate) patch.
Skin condition is called chemical leukoderma
Time of onset ranges from 2 months to 4 years
06/24/2015 FDA.gov