Newest Drug Discoveries and Pharmaceutical Research to be Unveiled at
American Association of Pharmaceutical Scientists (AAPS)
Annual Meeting in San Francisco on November 15-19

Alexandria, VA -- November 2, 1998 -- Six thousand of the world's premier pharmaceutical researchers will gather in San Francisco on November 15-19 to discuss the latest scientific research and medical advances of 1998. A small sampling of the breakthroughs, presented for the first time at the American Association of Pharmaceutical Scientists (AAPS) Annual Meeting, are listed below:

Sound-Alike Drugs Cause Potentially Dangerous Prescription Errors -- Nicoderm...Nitroderm; Xanax...Zantac: According to the FDA, look-alike and sound-alike drugs are causing roughly one death a day. Further, one out of every four reported prescription errors made by a pharmacist is due to name confusion. Pharmaceutical scientists are now studying this critical nomenclature issue and determining how to keep drugs with confusing names from reaching the market. Several of their recommendations to curb the probability of mistakes are currently being reviewed by the FDA.

Impact of High Altitude on Drug Efficacy -- Those who enjoy traveling to exotic locations, beware. The latest research shows that staying at high altitudes for more than 24 hours can alter the effect of drugs like Demerol, Lithium and even widely-used high altitude sickness medications like acetazolamide. How can skiers, hikers and tourists determine if their medication is ineffective at high altitudes? Pharmaceutical scientists are just beginning to study the topic and have some interesting research findings.

DHEA: Fountain of Youth or Dangerous Steroid? -- DHEA, developed to treat lupus, has recently made its way into mainstream health food stores and is being marketed as a naturally occurring "Fountain of Youth." The problem: The natural drug is conv
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Contact: Alisa Cahan
alisac@zynyx.com
305-672-4422
American Association of Pharmaceutical Scientists
2-Nov-1998