Testing It Up

Lupus has proven as much of a challenge for pharmaceutical companies seeking a cure as it is for those who suffer from the disease itself. Setbacks and failures have killed many of the treatment drugs seeking to aid those with lupus and until now none have made much ground. Human Genome Sciences claims to have a new drug that’s succeeded in its second trial, if that’s true then it could be the first major step to having an effective drug for Lupus treatment in nearly 40 years.

Benlysta performed well in the second trial though not as well as it had in the first making some wary but Human Genome Sciences seems confident that the effectiveness of the drug will show itself in the coming months. If all goes well Benlysta should be seeking approval in the first half of 2010.

Lupus, an autoimmune disease, is a condition in which the body’s natural protective pathogens instead begin to attack the tissues of the body. The disease can cause arthritis, mouth sores, kidney damage, and rashes among other problems. The diseases is particularly affecting because it targets women of child-bearing age.  The varying times of activity and inactivity involved with Lupus and the case by case symptoms make the disease detection difficult.

An estimates 200,000 of those affected by the disease could be looking at being candidates for the drug. Belysta works by blocking a protein that stimulates B cells, a part of the immune system that plays a part in the effects of Lupus. If the drug us proven effective many sufferers could be seeing how the drug works for themselves by the end of next year.

The toll of stress in the average Australian housewife’s life is causing her to turn lose and abuse drugs to get through her days according to the findings from Queensland’s Crime and Misconduct Commission on illicit drugs. When energy levels leave them feeling tired and out of sorts the drug is often a tool in making them feel more energizes and active. Cocaine use has trickled down from the socialites to middle class suburbia with many women in some wealthy suburbs becoming consistent abusers.

Substance abuse is a growing problem in many walks of life but the affluent families are much more likely to be able to afford the high cost of a drug habit than others. While once cocaine was a drug for the moneyed now it’s a drug for all ages and walks of life. Currently the drug costs about $350 Australian dollars per gram, while ecstasy costs as much as $40 a tablet. The study lends credence to the idea that housewives of all walks of life are turning to drug abuse to get through all manner of stress and anxiety in their lives. Little regard seems to be given for the consequences of this substance abuse.

Here is a quick summary of Flu Shut Locators available online right now. They can be Seasonal Flu or H1N1 Flu Shots.

American Lung Association Flu Clinic Locator: It lets users search for flu shot locations by ZIP code and date. Also offers information on the available influenza vaccines.

Flu.Gov Flu Shot Locator: Seasonal flu vaccine is widely available. Flu shot clinics locator covering both H1N1 and seasonal flu …

Google Flu Shot Locator Map: Helps you find local health clinics that might carry flu shot

Find a Flu Shot Location or Clinic: Some sources where you might be able to find a flu shot for your family.

Also check out

Assistant Surgeon General Dr. Anne Schuchat dispels myths about the H1N1 flu virus on “The Doctors”

Please let us know if you come across any other good flu shot locators online. For more information about flu you can also visit our resource section at Health Resources

One way to discover if your teen is doing drugs is to give them a drug test.  While many parents are worried about the idea of drugs, most of the at home tests tend to focus on marijuana in the urine. However, these tests skip the other drugs that may be even more dangerous and may also be part of the system as well. You can use an at home drug test that will effectively screen for all drugs in the system that may be harmful.

You can find out if your teen is taking Opiates, Amphetamines, Meth or Cocaine as well as marijuana when you use an at home test. Many of the street drugs that teens take will show up in this at home drug test that encompasses a wide range of drugs that may be in the system. If you find that your teen is testing positive for drugs, you can take the next step to help them get cured from a harmful addiction

There are many at home tests that you can use to test for certain diseases.  Some of them include diabetes, prostate cancer and thyroid diseases as well as colon disease. While an at home test cannot accurately diagnose a disease, it can diagnose a symptom that may be a very strong precursor to the disease.

Other at home tests can test for certain conditions in the body. These conditions include menopause as well as inflammatory diseases. These can be picked up in an at home test. There are also tests that can monitor conditions such as bone loss and high cholesterol that can lead to disease.  Those who are concerned about their health but who do not always want to be running to the doctor can use at home tests to monitor various aspects about their health from the privacy of their own home, without making an appointment to see the doctor.

If you are wondering if you are pregnant, you should take an at home pregnancy test. If the test is positive, the sooner you address your pregnancy the better off you are. You will want to make sure that you see a doctor if the test turns out positive as at home pregnancy tests are usually fail proof. You may, however, get a false negative if you do not perform the test correctly or if you perform the test too soon.

The best at home pregnancy test for you depends on whether you are late with your period and if you are planning on having children. If you are trying to get pregnant, you will want to purchase at home pregnancy tests that have more than one test in them.  If you are worried about being pregnant, you should purchase an at home test that will give you the information as soon as possible.

Are you wondering if you are menopausal? Many women feel as if they are becoming unglued when they go through menopause and wonder if they are actually experiencing menopause or if they are experiencing something else instead.

One way to discover if you are going through menopause is to monitor your estrogen that will tell you what stage you are in when you are going through menopause. Most women are happy to see that they are in the ending stages of menopause when they start to experience symptoms of the tell-tale signs of this natural condition, such as mood swings and hot flashes.

All women go through menopause differently so there is no way to tell for sure how far along you are unless you use a test. You can monitor your menopause at home and see what stage you are in when you use an at home testing kit for menopause.

An incident that reportedly involved the death of a pregnant woman serves as a reminder of how careful we should be regarding following the specifications associated with a certain drug. The woman, according to a report published on Med Page Today, was nebulized with Relenza (zanamavir) as a treatment for influenza. The incident reportedly occurred outside the United States.

Relenza, along with Tamiflu, are the drugs used to treat the pandemic swine flu virus. While Tamiflu, which comes in tablet form, can be taken orally, Relenza is to be taken through inhalation as it comes in inhalation powder form with an enclosed Diskhaler. This limits who can take the drug, as it can cause a condition known as bronchospasm in those suffering from asthma.

Unfortunately, this limitation has lead to the use of the drug in a form that has not been approved by the FDA and is not included in the information provided by the drug’ manufacturer, GlaxoSmithKline. The drug was reportedly removed from its approved packaging and then dissolved. The solution was then used to nebulize patients who are unable to take Relenza through inhalation.

The Food and Drug Administration has not approved the use of Relenza in this manner, although GlaxoSmithKline reportedly told the FDA that they were aware that the drug was being used in nebulizers. Despite the limitation in the way the drug is administered, Relenza is reportedly considered as more effective in treating the flu, especially the H1N1 flu, when compared with its main competitor, Tamiflu. This is probably the reason why some people are trying to find a way to administer the drug in a manner that those who fall within the limitation can take, but this last opinion is just conjecture on our part.

At any rate, GlaxoSmithKline has issued a circular warning physicians that Relenza “is not intended to be reconstituted in any liquid formation and it is not recommended for use in any nebulizer or mechanical ventilator.”

While vials containing vaccines against swine flu are starting to arrive in the country, a shortage of the seasonal flu vaccine has been reported. In Colorado, flu-shot clinics that were set up by two of the largest organizers of such events in the state had to cancel clinics.

The shortage is reportedly due to two things: first is the increase in demand for flu-shots, seasonal or otherwise. Although the seasonal flu vaccine will not work on the H1N1 strain and the swine flu vaccination is set to follow a prioritization scheme, it looks like more people would like to get protection from at least the usual flu virus.

The increase in demand, however, is not complemented by the volume of manufacturing. Due to the early onset of swine flu cases in the summer, manufacturing companies placed their attention on developing and manufacturing swine flu vaccine.

According to the organizers – Mile Hi Immunizations and Colorado Wellness Corporation, they were initially told by the vaccine manufacturers and distributers that they were working in that they will be facing delays in the deliveries; they were later told Friday last week that aside from the delays, the amount of vaccines to be shipped will be reduced by a significant 80%.

The two companies have altogether cancelled 450 of their scheduled flu-shot clinics, and stand to experience financial setbacks.

California-based distributor, FFF Enterprises, supply Mile Hi and Colorado Wellness with vaccines. Its chief executive Patrick Schmidt was quoted in a Denver Post feature as having said that the seasonal flu vaccine shortage was being experienced nationwide.

A number of doctor’s offices have already reportedly run out of vaccines, and retailers such as Walgreens, Target and grocery stores confirm the high demand. There are reportedly doses still available, at least with these retailers.

According to CNN medical correspondent Sajay Gupta H1N1 is “a lot like…the flu”. The correspondent has firsthand knowledge about what it was like to experience the new and more virulent form of the flu after he dealt with it in Afghanistan. The doctor explains that the symptoms began as a cough that stings the chest and went on to become fever, body aches, and eventually nausea and vomiting.

While the virus is considered to be a serious health concern worldwide Gupta’s own case was treated as any other case of the flu might have been with a decongestant, Tylenol and eventually an IV (to replace lost fluids when they couldn’t be held down). Dr. Gupta expressed a strong belief that most people will have no more serious symptoms than he himself had and have the added benefit of easily accessible medical care, a luxury didn’t have while he was in Afghanistan. This is interesting news in light of the warnings put out by such groups as the World Health Organization who warned that the first strain of the flu shouldn’t be used as a guide for how serious the impending strain will be.