No abstract

: Adrenergic β-blockers are used to treat many conditions, including hypertension, cardiac arrhythmias, heart failure, angina pectoris, migraine, and tremors. The majority of the β-blockers, including propranolol, metoprolol, acebutolol, alprenolol, betaxolol, carvedilol, nebivolol, and oxprenolol are metabolised majorly by CYP2D6, and bisoprolol is primarily metabolised by CYP3A4 enzymes. The drugs inhibiting or inducing them may alter the pharmacokinetics of those β-blockers. The plasma concentrations of propranolol might be elevated by the concomitant use of drugs such as SSRIs (Fluoxetine, Paroxetine), SNRIs (Duloxetine), and cimetidine, while the plasma concentrations of metoprolol are increased by the concurrent use of SSRIs (Fluoxetine, Paroxetine), amiodarone, celecoxib, cimetidine, terbinafine, and diphenhydramine. β-blockers can also interact pharmacodynamically with drugs, including fluoroquinolones, antidiabetic agents, and NSAIDs. In addition, β-blockers may interact with herbs such as curcumin, Ginkgo biloba, Schisandra chinensis, green tea, guggul, hawthorn, St. John’s wort, and Yohimbine . This article focuses on clinically relevant drug interactions of β-blockers with commonly prescribed medications. In addition to pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of the drug interactions, recommendations for clinical practice are highlighted. The prescribers and the pharmacists are needed to be aware of the drugs interacting with β-blockers to prevent possible adverse drug interactions.

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS CoV-2) and patients with COVID-19 may be treated primarily with SARS CoV-2-targeting drugs and the therapeutic agents assisting in the management of COVID-19 complications. This review focuses on the supplements like vitamins, minerals, herbal constituents, and others that help prevent or manage negative outcomes among COVID-19 patients. The literature was searched in databases such as Medline/PubMed Central/PubMed, Google Scholar, Science Direct, EBSCO, Scopus, EMBASE, the Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ), and reference lists to identify relevant articles. The vitamins, including vitamin C, and vitamin D, minerals such as zinc, selenium, and copper, herbal constituents like thymoquinone, curcumin, naringenin, quercetin, and glycyrrhizin, and other supplements, including N-acetylcysteine and melatonin. Melatonin have been identified as having the potential to manage patients with COVID-19 along with standard care. Some of the ongoing clinical trials are investigating the effectiveness of different supplements among COVID-19 patients.

Context: Cervical and breast cancer is the most leading cause of death among women globally. Cervical and breast cancer can be cured if detected early. Aims: The aim of the study was to compare the knowledge and awareness of cervical and breast cancer among medical and nonmedical students of a private institution in South India. Settings and Design: A cross-sectional study was done on 600 female students of a private institution comprising both medical and nonmedical for a period of 6 months. Subjects and Methods: A study was done to assess the awareness and knowledge on cervical and breast cancer by using a standardized questionnaire. Statistical Analysis Used: The data were statistically analyzed with Mann–Whitney test by using GraphPad prism. Results: Out of the 600 female students, there were each of 300 female students in medical and nonmedical. Majority of the student population was seen in 17–19 years: 143 (47.6%) in medical and 206 (68.6%) in nonmedical. A total of 235 (78.3%) medical students have heard of cervical cancer and its screening (164 [54.6%]). Many nonmedical students have never heard of cervical cancer (248 [82.6%]) and its screening (283 [94.3%]). Nearly 61% of the medical students and 1.1% nonmedical have heard of Pap smear. Both medical students (276 [92%]) and nonmedical students (179 [53.2%]) were aware of the breast cancer but have less awareness about the age of occurrence. Awareness on breast self-examination was poor among medical (137 [45.6%]) and nonmedical (19 [5.6%]) students. The P < 0.0001 (<0.05) showed a statistically significant difference between the medical and nonmedical students. Conclusions: Through the findings of our study, we analyzed that the knowledge and awareness of cervical and breast cancer among medical students was better than that of the nonmedical students.

Objective: Hypertension (HTN) expends a consequential public health concern on cardiovascular health status and health-care systems in India. The effectuation of the pharmaceutical care program in the health care is an extremely important need to achieve the optimum therapeutic effect. The objective of the study was to assess the impact of pharmacist intervention on patient's blood pressure (BP) level, quality of life (QOL), and knowledge, attitude, and practice (KAP) of hypertensive patients. Methods:A randomized controlled pilot study was carried out for 6 months. The hypertensive patients were randomized into control and intervention group based on age, and both the groups were interviewed using KAP and WHO QOL-BREF questionnaires, screened BP, respectively, at baseline and each follow-up after post counseling section to the intervention group. The effect of pharmacist intervention on QOL and KAP among control and intervention was statistically analyzed by paired t-test using SPSS version 16. Results:The total sample studied was 60, of which 20 (33.33%) were males and 40 (66.67%) were females. In our study, the QOL score for each domain of both intervention and control groups were almost poor (p˃0.05) at baseline and for the intervention group, a highly significant improvement (p<0.001) was observed for all domains in final follow-up. KAP score of intervention group also showed a significant improvement (p<0.001) from baseline to final follow-up. In this study, intervention group showed a significant mean reduction of systolic BP from baseline 150.13±25.670 to final follow-up 145.33±12.914. Conclusion:The results of the study showed a significant improvement in the patient's KAP toward different aspects of HTN and QOL following pharmacist mediated counseling. Involvement of pharmacy practitioners in the management of HTN significantly improves QOL and KAPs.