NotOnly Dispensing

Do you know? Coca-Cola™ Do you know that Coca-Cola™  was invented in the 1880s by a pharmacist in  Atlanta, Georgia? Coca-Cola ™ was invented by John Pemberton out of curiousity. He mixed a caramel-like liquid with carbonated water at Jacobs' Pharmacy, which was just nearby, and sampled it to the customers there. The feedback was so good that Jacobs' Pharmacy put the drink on sale at five cents per glass! Through years and years of expansion, and so we have our big beverage giant nowadays which is known globally. And NO , it was not started first as medicine !

Do you know? Warfarin Do you know that Warfarin is originated from  Coumarin , a molecule which can be found in plants, with a scent of sweet smell.  It was first started with dicoumarol , which was converted from coumarin for its anticoagulant property and warfarin was produced in the next few years with the intention to be use as a rat poison in the 1940s. Later on, warfarin was used for attempted suicide and studies on the use of warfarin as therapeutic agent began. Until today, the use of warfarin in medical field has been expanding and benefits a lot of people worldwide.

Calcium supplementation   Greetings,  Calcium is one of the essential elements for maintaining normal physiological process in our body. It can be obtained from our daily diet. Examples of food enriched with calcium includes dairy products such as cheese, milk and yoghurt, nuts and seeds such as almonds, sesame seeds, and vegetables such as ladyfingers and soya beans. When dietary intake of calcium is insufficient, sign and symptoms of calcium deficiency @ hypocalcemia may occur. Calcium deficiency symptoms are usually muscle-related , as in muscle twitching, stiffness, numbness, weakness, or irregular heartbeats. Chronic calcium deficiency may lead to bone demineralization, bone density loss and eventually results in brittle and fragile bone.  *Ever heard osteoporosis?* Calcium supplementation can be an alternative source of calcium to overcome the issue. But, how much of calcium do we actually need? Are the calcium supplements that we are taking is adequate for our dai...

Diltiazem, Amlodipine and Verapamil (DAV) and their interactions with Simvastatin Good Evening, Today I would like to share a tiny bit of information on Diltiazem, Amlodipine and Verapamil (DAV)  and their interactions with Simvastatin . The use of statin may induce myopathy as one of its side effects. High dose of Simvastatin (>80mg) has been associated with increased risk of myopathy .  One may experience muscle-related symptoms such as fatigue, muscle pain or weakness, cramps and it may be aggravated by physical exertion. Simvastatin is metabolized by CYP3A4 enzyme in the body. The DAVs are all CYP3A4 enzyme inhibitors . Concomitant use of the drugs may lead to increased plasma concentration of Simvastatin, which in turn, increases the risk of myopathy. Findings from multiple studies has shown that the coadministration of Amlodipine 10mg and Simvastatin has the potential to increase the plasma concentration of Simvastatin by approximately 2-fold . On the other hand...