CP, March 2018, Vol 10, No 3

Improving medicines optimisation for care home residents: Wigan Borough CCG’s approach

Although clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) are not responsible for monitoring or regulating care homes, Wigan Borough’s approach demonstrates that it is possible for CCG staff to work collaboratively with care home and social care teams to improve outcomes for patients.…

Assessment and management of psoriasis in adults in primary care

Psoriasis is a complex, multifactorial, inflammatory disease associated with a significantly impaired quality of life. Around 80% of patients with plaque psoriasis have mild-to-moderate disease that is amenable to treatment in primary care, particularly through pharmacy, with topical therapies.…

Repurposing drugs to treat disturbances of learning and memory in neuropsychiatric disorders

In high-income countries, such as the UK, mental health problems are among the most prevalent medical conditions.…

Standardising the use of oral liquid medicines to treat tuberculosis in the UK

We are writing to highlight recent work carried out to improve the provision of anti-tuberculosis oral liquid medicines in the UK. Almost two-thirds of hospital pharmacy departments in the UK have reported problems accessing anti-tuberculosis treatments[1] . The fragility of th…

Patient perspective of a pilot pharmacist-led medicines and health education programme for mental health

Psychoeducation is the education of a person with a psychiatric disorder regarding the symptoms, treatments and prognosis of their illness[1] . There is evidence to suggest that it can improve outcomes for patients with mental health conditions[2] . A Cochrane review on psychoeduca…

Re-analysis calls into question efficacy of anti-nausea pregnancy drug

Researchers have re-analysed individual-level data from a randomised controlled trial of doxylamine-pyridoxine.…

Smoking cessation drug linked to cardiovascular adverse events

In a study of new varenicline users, researchers found that the incidence of cardiovascular events was 34% higher during the 12-week treatment period than in the year before or after use…

Prenatal paracetamol exposure linked to language delay in girls

Study finds that girls whose mothers took paracetamol six times or more in the first trimester had a 5.9-fold greater chance of language delay.…

Chronic pain medication linked to poor cardiometabolic outcomes

Research raises questions about the impact of chronic pain medication on cardiometabolic health …

Coarse, as well as fine, particulate matter increases asthma risk in children

Study finds that exposure to coarse particulate matter is significantly associated with an increased relative rate of asthma diagnosis, independent of exposure to fine particulate matter.…