Feeling feverish?

We have all been educated to think that 98.6 degrees Fahrenheit is the average body temperature of humans and that anything above that reading indicates a fever. However, it's not really that simple. Rectal temperature, which most accurately reflects true internal body temperature, varies from 97.9 degrees F. (morning) to 100.4 degree F. (late afternoon). Oral, armpit and ear temperatures, which are less accurate and can be influenced by external factors, can be as low as 94.5 degrees F. To determine your personal "normal" temperature, take three readings (morning, noon and night) at any one of the four sites, and calculate your average temperature for each of the three times of day. Use those numbers as your base temperature.

Does grapefruit juice stymie statin drugs?

If you are prescribed cholesterol-lowering drugs, you should know that some may be vulnerable to an adverse interaction with grapefruit juice. While "statins" such as rosuvastatin (Crestor), fluvastatin (Lescol) and pravastatin (Pravachol) do not interact with grapefruit products, atorvastatin (Lipitor), lovastatin (Mevacor, Altoprev) and simvastatin (Zocor) are susceptible to harm from grapefruit juice.

What to take for arthritic knees

Osteoarthritis of the knees is a common problem, particularly after age 60. While low-impact aerobic exercise, muscle strengthening, and stretching can help increase range of motion and decrease pain, medications are often also necessary. If so, the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons recommends the following medications to control symptoms: no more than 4 grams of acetaminophen (Tylenol) per day; non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) such as ibuprofen (Advil) or naproxen sodium (Aleve) taken with food; cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) inhibitors, such as celecoxib (Celebrex); or topical NSAID diclofenac sodium (Voltaren Gel). These recommendations are designed to reduce the risk of gastrointestinal bleeding. If they cannot be tolerated or greater pain relief is needed, a corticosteroid injection may be needed.

Travel advice

Whether you are going to drive or fly, if you plan to travel with medications, it is best to keep them in the passenger compartment, not the vehicle's trunk or the jet's storage area. According to the U.S. Pharmacopeia, most medications should be kept at temperatures between 68 and 77 degrees Fahrenheit in order to maintain optimal quality and effectiveness. Practically speaking, a wider temperature range between 59 and 86 degrees is also acceptable, but excessive heat should be avoided. It is also prudent to check drug labels for warnings about proper storage. Drugs such as insulin require refrigeration. If there are any questions, ask the pharmacist about any special precautions that should be taken with medications while traveling.

Migraine medication may increase birth-defect risk

Cleft lips and palates occur when the mouth does not fully form, which leads to a split lip or hole in the upper palate. While such oral birth defects are relatively rare in the United States, it has been found that an epilepsy drug used to help prevent migraines can increase the risk of these defects in babies born to mothers who take the medication. According to the FDA, expectant mothers who take the drug topiramate (Topamax) are about 20 times more likely to have infants with cleft lips or cleft palates than women not taking the medication. Women of childbearing age should know that the defects occur during the first three months of pregnancy, often before a woman knows she is pregnant.

Expanded use of prostrate cancer drug

The FDA recently approved the expanded use of a drug that was initially approved to treat prostate cancer patients whose disease had progressed after treatment with the chemotherapy drug docetaxel. Now, Zytiga can also be used to treat men with late-stage, hormone therapy-resistant prostate cancer before they undergo chemotherapy. Zytiga works by decreasing production of the male sex hormone testosterone, which stimulates the growth of prostate tumors. The approval of this expanded use of Zytiga was made under the FDA's priority review program, which provides an accelerated six-month review for medications that may present major advances in treatment or provide a treatment when adequate therapy is not available for the treatment of disease.

Is newer necessarily better?

Pharmacists can perform an important service to consumers by informing them about drug effectiveness. For instance, when an older drug is just as effective as a newer one and costs substantially less, the pharmacist may disabuse a patient of the widely held notion that something newer is necessarily better. Similarly, the pharmacist may help dispel the notion that, if something costs more, it is necessarily better. As a case in point, three of the oldest and least costly medications used to treat type 2 diabetes (metformin, glimepiride and glipizide), when taken alone or in combination, may be better first choices for diabetics than newer brand-name drugs like pioglitazone (Actos), rosiglitazone (Avandia) and sitagliptin (Januvia). It may pay to ask.

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Treating osteoarthritis

Osteoarthritis sufferers have traditionally relied on "non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs" (NSAIDs) to reduce joint pain and swelling. However, because continued use of such NSAIDs as aspirin and ibuprofen often leads to gastrointestinal problems, drug makers turned their attention to developing a form of NSAID known as a COX-2 selective inhibitor. This drug selectively targets COX-2, which is an enzyme directly responsible for inflammation and pain. While this type of NSAID has been found to produce less stomach upset than other NSAIDs, COX-2 selective inhibitors are associated with an increased risk of blood clots that can lead to heart attack and stroke. For this reason, celecoxib (Celebrex) should be taken in the smallest possible dose for the shortest possible period.

Treating sinus infections

Sinus infections are painful occurrences that often lead physicians to prescribe antibiotics, often upon the urging of uncomfortable patients. In fact, sinus infections (also known as "acute sinusitis"), which produce severe cold-like symptoms of runny nose and headache, are the fifth most common reason for prescribing antibiotics among U.S. adults. Yet, a recent study shows that antibiotics do not help fight most sinus infections. The fact is that doctors cannot tell if a sinus infection is caused by bacteria or by a virus, in which case antibiotics are useless.

Low dose to no dose is no good

Doctors may prescribe a low-dose aspirin regimen to patients who have experienced heart attacks or strokes. Not only can a daily "baby" aspirin help prevent a second heart attack or stroke, it may also reduce the chance of having a heart attack or stroke among patients with certain risk factors (diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol or smoking). However, about half of those on daily aspirin regimens discontinue use for various reasons (including stomach upset and simply forgetting). This unauthorized halt of a daily aspirin regimen can pose significant dangers (increased risk of heart attack and death from coronary heart disease) to those who have cardiovascular disease. Consultation with the prescribing doctor is imperative before discontinuing daily doses of aspirin.

Can aspirin stop cancer's spread?

If aspirin's health benefits were limited to reducing inflammation, alleviating pain, and promoting heart health, it would be quite enough. However, researchers are continuing to find new ways that this common drug improves health and combats disease. The latest findings provide an answer to how aspirin and other anti-inflammatory drugs are able to help inhibit the spread of cancer. New research shows that aspirin's cancer-inhibiting effect may be traced to its ability to shut down the chemical "highways" that feed cancer cells. It seems that aspirin is able to reduce the dilation of vessels that feed tumors throughout the body. Once these "supply lines" are restricted, cancer growth slows. Once more, aspirin proves itself to be a "miracle drug."

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Woman sentenced on drug charge

COEUR d'ALENE - Fawnie Lynn Bracamonte, 28, of Post Falls, was sentenced Tuesday in U.S. District Court to 40 months in prison for selling prescription drugs.

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