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Background: For safe use of medicines, awareness regarding the existing knowledge of adverse drug reactions (ADRs) is essential to prevent, identify, and manage them. Aim: The present study is planned to assess variation in documented ADRs of antihypertensive drugs in various sources of drug information. Material and Methods: A cross-sectional, observational study was undertaken to analyze the different sources of ADRs-related information. Textbooks, National Formulary India (NFI), Drug Today (DT), and Current Index of Medical Specialties (CIMS) were analyzed for ADRs pertaining to nine antihypertensive groups comprising a total of 44 drugs. ADRs were categorized according to body systems, tabulated, and compared. Quantitative and qualitative analyses of ADRs and serious ADRs were done. Results and Discussion: Textbooks mostly provided ADRs of drug groups as a whole and not of individual drugs. None of the analyzed sources mentioned all antihypertensive drugs. DT contained information for the maximum number of drugs studied (81.8%) and NFI gave information for 29.7% drugs only. There was a wide variability among various resources while listing ADRs. NFI listed the maximum number of total ADRs, and least ADR information was provided by DT. NFI mentioned the maximum number of serious ADRs (47) for prototype drugs followed by CIMS (36) and DT (8). The quality of data was better in NFI, but none of the resources studied were found to be complete. Conclusion: No source of information was complete in providing wholesome information of ADRs studied, and there was a wide variability in describing them. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Many studies show a high prevalence of vitamin D deficiency across various populations the world over . There is relative lack of prevalence data in Punjab, India. This cross-sectional study was carried out to assess the prevalence of vitamin D deficiency in the north-west Punjab population. Aim: To study the prevalence of vitamin D deficiency in the north-west Punjab population across various population characteristics such as gender, education, locality, occupation, and dietary habits. Materials and Methods: Healthy volunteers (N = 150) of either sex were enrolled and their fasting plasma samples tested for 25-hydroxy vitamin D [25(OH) D] levels. Data were compiled as percentages and means across different population characteristics. Statistical analysis was done using Chi-square test and Fisher's exact test. Results: A high overall prevalence (90%) of vitamin D deficiency was observed in the study subjects. There was a significant difference in the prevalence of vitamin D insufficiency between rural and urban subjects (P < 0.05) and among the subjects pursuing different occupations (P < 0.001). A significant gender-specific difference was also recorded at the cut-off level of 25 (OH) D, with women showing higher prevalence of deficiency compared to men (P < 0.05). Conclusions: There is a high prevalence of vitamin D deficiency in the population of Punjab. Lower prevalence is displayed by those subjects who have greater opportunities for sunlight exposure, such as like rural individuals, farmers, and housewives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The authors discuss the potential of intradetrusor botulinum toxin type A (BoNTA) as a treatment for refractory overactive bladder (OAB). They stated that there are several treatments available for OAB but have their own limitations, as well as side effects that limit the effectiveness of these treatments. BoNTA is a drug derived from different strains of the bacterium Clostridium botulinum. Results of a study on the use of BoNTA in treating OAB are presented.

The article presents a study which evaluates the effects of antibiotic in treating Scrub Typhus through meta-analysis and systematic review of clinical trials. It says that Scrub Typhus, a zoonotic disease that was caused by Orientia tsutsugamushi, is transmitted to humans when they are bitten by a larval leptotrombidium mite. It states that despite the well documented clinical presentations of scrub typhus patients, most of these patients, who were presented to hospitals, have shown no specific signs and symptoms. Moreover, the most common clinical presentation is acute undifferentiated fever, specifically the acute fever with no obvious focus of infection. It concludes that the use of doxycycline, chloramphenicol, and tetracycline show varied success in some comparative studies.

The article discusses the beneficial effects of irbesartan in diabetic nephropathy on animals and humans. It offers information on the debatable issues between the use of insulin and angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors and its therapeutic efficiency in diabetes. It presents the results of the study which depicts that insulin prevents proteinuria and the creatinine clearance in normal rats.

A letter to the editor is presented in response to the article "The Concept of Personal Drugs in the Undergraduate Pharmacology Practical Curriculum," by Gurudas Khilnani.