An estimated 56,000 persons in the United States become infected with HIV every year. Of the 1.1 million persons living with HIV in the United States, approximately 250,000 are not aware of their infection and their risk for transmitting HIV to others. Of those who are unaware, many are diagnosed late in the course of their infection, after a prolonged asymptomatic period during which further transmission may have occurred. Persons who are diagnosed late in their infection miss a valuable opportunity to start HIV care and are at greater risk for AIDS-related complications (than those diagnosed earlier). Therefore, it should […]
Tag: Drug
Your Good Health: Medication Adherence
Last month, many of us made New Year’s resolutions and we were being deluged with advice about how to eat sensibly, how to exercise our way to fitness, and how to develop and keep healthy habits. But let’s get down to basics: how well do you follow your doctor’s advice? Doctors will be increasingly held accountable for your overall health and wellness, and your progress towards sustained good health, under the Affordable Care Act (ACA). The ACA aims to increase the quality of care given and reduce the costs, thereby ensuring that the right care is given in the right […]
What Does “Off-Label” Mean?
We often hear about drugs being prescribed “off-label.” Many patients have questions about what this means. Is it safe? Is it legal? How can we know that off-label use will help us get better? Off-label use is the practice of prescribing pharmaceuticals for an unapproved indication, age group, dose or form of administration. We will explain more about this shortly. But first, let’s look at how drugs are approved for use in our country. In the U.S., the Food and Drug Administration Center for Drug Evaluation and Research review’s a company’s New Drug Application for data from clinical trials to […]