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Common Misspellings:
(indomethacin)
The prescription medication Indocin® or Indomethacin has been found effective in moderate to severe rheumatoid arthritis, ankylosing spondylitis, osteoarthritis, acute painful shoulder (bursitis and/or tendinitis), and acute gouty arthritis.
The prescription medication Indocin® should not be used for any reasons other than those listed under indications. Talk to your doctor about the uses when it is prescribed to you.
The most common side effects of the prescription medication Indocin® are: nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, stomach discomfort, heartburn, rash, headache, dizziness and drowsiness. If you suffer from stomach or intestinal bleeding, or ulcers, then Indocin® might worsen your condtion. Other side effects include increased blood pressure and/or decrease kidney function.
Side effects are difficult to predict. Some side effects are normal, while other side effects are not. Always discuss any side effects you are experiencing while taking any prescription medication, including the prescription medication Indocin®, with your doctor.
By Robert Preidt
MONDAY, May 22 (HealthDay News) -- Common painkillers called nonsteroidal anti-inflammatories (NSAIDs) are associated with a 30 percent increased risk in older patients of first hospital admission for heart failure, a U.K. study reports.
The four-year study of people aged 60 to 84 found that a previous diagnosis of heart failure, obesity, being a smoker, and a history of recent in-patient stays and specialist appointments were all associated with a greater chance of being admitted to hospital for heart failure for the first time.
Of those admitted to hospital, 14 percent were taking NSAIDs at the time of their admission, compared with 10 percent of a comparison group of randomly selected people. Half the people admitted to hospital were aged 70 to 79.
Of all the NSAIDs, indomethacin (indocin) was associated with the highest risk. People taking that drug were three times more likely to be admitted to hospital than people who weren't taking indomethacin. Osteoarthritis was the most common reason why people took NSAIDs.
The study authors concluded that for every 1,000 people aged 60 to 84 taking NSAIDS, there would be one extra first hospital admission for heart failure. That could increase to three additional cases per 1,000 people among patients aged 70 and older with conditions such as diabetes, high blood pressure or kidney failure.
The findings appear in the current online issue of Heart .
Heart failure is a common cause of illness and death among the elderly, the researchers noted.
"Even a small increase in the risk can translate into a significant disease burden in the general population," they wrote.
SOURCE: BMJ Specialist Journal, news release, May 22, 2006
Copyright © 2006 ScoutNews LLC . All rights reserved.
Four foods can help make the difference
WebMD Weight Loss Clinic
July 22, 2003 -- You can lower your cholesterol by diet alone.
Conventional wisdom says most people can't do it. But a head-to-head showdown says otherwise. The astonishing truth: A cholesterol-busting diet can work as well as new anti-cholesterol drugs. And there's a bonus. Unlike the drugs, the diet has no side effects and costs little.
Diet inventor David J.A. Jenkins, MD, PhD, DSc, is a vegetarian, but he's no scientific lightweight. He's director of the clinical nutrition and risk factor modification center at St. Michael's Hospital in Toronto , Canada , and professor of nutritional sciences at the University of Toronto .
Last year, he showed that a vegetarian diet combining four types of cholesterol-lowering foods works as well as cholesterol-lowering drugs known as statins. But the study appeared in the relatively obscure journal Metabolism . Now, with the direct comparison to statins, his work has hit the big time. It's featured in the July 23/30 issue of The Journal of the American Medical Association .
"The big thing is, we have tested the diet against statins directly and showed the same benefit," Jenkins tells WebMD. "This head-to-head comparison now makes this diet more relevant to the average person."
Source: http://onhealth.webmd.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=56562
Please note that this is not the full article.
Gout is a systemi c d isease, meaning a condition that occurs throughout the body that is caused by the buildup of uric acid in the joints. Hyperuricemia is an elevated blood level of uric acid. This can occur when the liver produces too much uric acid, and the body can't excrete it all in the urine. This can also occur when a diet high in rich foods, like red meat, cream sauces, red wine, produces too much uric acid, and the kidneys can't filter them from the blood.
Over a long period of time uric acid can crystallize in the blood and settle in the joint spaces. This can cause swelling, inflammation, stiffness, and pain. Gout will usually affect the ankle joints or the first metatarsal phalangeal joint of the big toe.
If you feel you suffer from gouty arthritis, talk to your doctor to see if the prescription medication Indocin® is right for you.