One of the symptoms reported by patients that will catch my attention is diarrhea. This can often be an adverse effect of medication. When I see orders for medications that manage diarrhea, I really start to pay attention. Usually, this is indicative of a chronic...
Cyclobenzaprine (podcast episode) is a skeletal muscle relaxant that is most commonly used for muscle spasms and back pain. It definitely has some potential adverse effects that I have seen lead to the prescribing cascade. Here’s a rundown of medications that...
At its worst, constipation can be a very serious issue in some patients and at best be a significant nuisance. Here’s a classic example of the constipation prescribing cascade. A 72-year-old female has a history of chronic pain, urinary incontinence,...
Somedays I scratch my head more than others…today was one of those days. Seeing Senna and loperamide scheduled together made me scratch it REAL hard. A 77-year-old male was complaining of constipation and Miralax PRN was added to help. As I started reviewing the...
The GLP-1 Agonists have grown significantly in their popularity and there are good reasons for that increase in use. They promote weight loss which is a big problem in the majority of our type 2 diabetes patients. In addition to this benefit, they have also been shown...
SGLT2s like empagliflozin, dapagliflozin, ertugliflozin, and canagliflozin are getting more use in diabetes care as time goes on. As a geriatric pharmacist, I certainly recognize that these agents have a lot of potential benefits, but they can also have adverse...
