Weekly Roundup 10.9.15

The days are growing noticeably shorter. The autumn chill has made itself felt from time to time. The leaves look ready to do their turn. The garden is in want of a mulching. Pumpkins are expectantly perched on front porches awaiting the arrival of Trick or Treaters. There is of course Halloween candy to be bought. Linens have disappeared and sweaters have come out of hibernation. Autumn is here.

And also here are a few things that happened this week that I thought notable for the Roundup!

  • New Injectable Approved for Schizophrenia FDA announced this week the approval of Aristada™ (aripiprazole lauroxil), an extended release injection to treat adults with schizophrenia, administered by a health care professional every four to six weeks. As with other antipsychotic medications used to treat this condition, the product will have a Boxed Warning related to off label use in older patients with dementia-related psychosis and it will be accompanied by a Medication Guide. In August, FDA notified the manufacturer that it would not be meeting the PDUFA date that had been set. According to the manufacturer’s release, the product contains a range of dosing options and intervals to meet individual treatment needs.
  • New Tobacco Campaign from FDA – One does not often think of associated the term “FDA” with the term “hip-hop” but that is what is happening here. The agency announced this week that it was launching a new campaign aimed at preventing and reducing tobacco use among multicultural youth. The reason? Research has shown that these are the folks are more likely to use tobacco than other groups within this age bracket. The agency concedes that this is a hard-to-reach audience that has frequent exposure to pro-tobacco use messaging. Termed the “Fresh Empire” campaign, it relies on ads and paid media, but also on outreach. The campaign launches October 12 and examples of ads are contained in the press release.
  • More AIDS News from WHO and a Campaign Aimed at Improving Adolescent Health – Last week WHO announced a proposed change in treatment guidelines to expand treatment to people with HIV and people at risk for HIV both as a treatment and a preventive – mentioned here last week in The Weekly Roundup. In the U.S. and perhaps other nations in the West, we have seen the urgency of HIV subside with the rise in treatment. However, WHO reminded us this week when it launched new global standards to improve healthcare for adolescents throughout the world that HIV/AIDS is still a pressing issue demanding both medical and humanitarian attention with AIDS being the leading cause of death among adolescents in Africa and the second leading cause of death globally.
  • Ed is Back! Pharmalot, Pharmalittle – a virtual cup of coffee with Ed Silverman, author and tweeter of Pharmalot is back. Ed returned Pharmalot to activity this week here as he transitions the blog. He said that “Pharmalot will continue its coverage as part of the new Stat site devoted to health, medicine and life sciences that is being launched by The Boston Globe.” Welcome back Ed!

That’s it for me this week folks. Have a great weekend and don’t forget to buy the candy so that you are not rushing out at the last minute.

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