Clinical therapeutics
-
Clinical therapeutics · Jan 1983
ReviewManagement of the pregnant patient with chronic hypertension.
Once the diagnosis of chronic hypertension in pregnancy has been made, many centers in the United States treat moderate to severe cases of chronic hypertension pharmacologically, hoping to delay or obviate the onset of superimposed preeclampsia and to improve perinatal outcome. Methyldopa, which is most often used, is the only antihypertensive drug for which there is no evidence of adverse effects in long-term follow-up studies of fetuses exposed to it. ⋯ These newer drugs have fewer maternal side effects and, as yet, no adverse effects on fetuses have been seen. Clinical trials of labetalol will soon start in the United States.
-
Clinical therapeutics · Jan 1983
Clinical TrialClinical trial of bacampicillin in acute bacterial infections.
A clinical trial of bacampicillin was carried out in 20 patients. The antibiotic was found to be effective in acute lobar pneumonia, pyogenic meningitis, acute and chronic bronchitis, acute pharyngitis, acute tonsillitis, cellulitis, furunculosis, and pyomyositis caused by such ampicillin-sensitive organisms as Neisseria meningitidis, Diplococcus pneumoniae, Staphylococcus aureus, Haemophilus influenzae, Streptococcus pyogenes, Klebsiella pneumoniae, and Escherichia coli. Rash in three patients was the only side effect encountered. It is concluded that while bacampicillin may have overcome some of the disadvantages of ampicillin, it retains its main attributes and some shortcomings.
-
Studies among a total of about 300 patients with congestive heart failure treated over eight to ten months reveal a distinct and sustained benefit from vasodilator therapy. Increased longevity has not yet been established, but in most circumstances there has been noticeable symptomatic, radiological, and hemodynamic improvement. Unresolved problems continue to center around variability in response, difficulties in objective assessment (invasive and noninvasive) before and during therapy, and selection criteria for patients and drugs. Lesser problems include the construction of effective dosage schedules, deleterious effects after sudden withdrawal, development of tolerance, and side effects.
-
Clinical therapeutics · Jan 1981
Comparative Study Clinical Trial Controlled Clinical TrialComparative trial of intravenous lorazepam and clonazepam im status epilepticus.
The primary use of lorazepam, when administered intravenously (IV), has been in the treatment of acute attacks of anxiety and agitation. Recent studies have investigated its efficacy in patients with status epilepticus. The present study compared the efficacy and tolerability of lorazepam and clonazepam in the treatment of status epilepticus. ⋯ Both drugs were most effective in patients with secondary generalized epilepsy. Drowsiness followed either drug. Psychomotor agitation followed either drug in 12% of patients.