CDC plugs antibiotic resistance campaign through awareness week

BY DREW BUONO proper antibiotic usage. CDC’s principles for appro- including when to use antibi- length of time indicated by

Thecampaignisintended priate antibiotic use for otics for viral infections, their physician and making to reach out to more health- pediatric and adult upper informing patients to remain sure physicians are prescrib-care professionals about the respiratory tract infections, on the medications for the ing the right medications.

WASHINGTON — The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is spreading the word on its “Get Smart: Know When Antibiotics Work” campaign.

Around since the early ’90s, the campaign aims to reduce the rise of antibiotic resistance in the United States by promoting the appropriate use of antibiotics for such respiratory conditions as otitis media, sinusitis, pharyngitis, acute bronchitis and the common cold. These conditions accounted for more than 75 percent of all office-based prescribing for all ages.

In response, Get Smart is designating Oct. 6 to 10 as “Get Smart about Antibiotics Week,” in hopes of raising more awareness about antibiotic resistance among doctors, clinicians and patients. The Food and Drug Administration is working with the CDC on a national media campaign to help spread the word on proper antibiotic usage. The two organizations have been working together on the issue since late 2003.

During the week of Oct. 6, the organizations plan to launch a national media campaign with educational materials presented in print and on the Web. The CDC also will let individual state coalitions that it had worked with prior to teaming up with the FDA conduct their own campaigns to get the word out on

Confidence a nd Control

in the treatment of hypertension

Dispense Low Dose Sular^® (nisoldipine) with

Geomatrix^® Delivery System:

• Proven efficacy in lowering systolic and diastolic pressure¹

• Once-a-day dosing provides 24-hour control²

• Shown to blunt the rise of early morning systolic blood pressure²*

* Clinical significance unknown

Indications and Usage

Sular^® is indicated for the treatment of hypertension. It may be used alone or in combination with other antihypertensive agents.

Important Safety Information

The most common adverse events, reported in US placebo-controlled trials, were peripheral edema, headache, and dizziness. In rare cases, some patients, particularly those with severe obstructive coronary artery disease, have developed increased frequency, duration, and/or severity of angina, or acute myocardial infarction on starting calcium channel blocker therapy or at the time of dosage increase. Safety of Sular^® in patients with heart failure has not been established. Sular^® should be administered cautiously in patients over the age of 65 and in those with severe hepatic dysfunction. Because nisoldipine, like other vasodilators, decreases peripheral vascular resistance, careful monitoring of blood pressure during the initial administration and titration of Sular^® is recommended. Sular^® should not be taken with grapefruit products.

Available in 8.5mg, 17mg,

25.5mg, and 34mg tablets

The CDC campaign will include educational materials via print and the Web to encourage proper antibiotic usage.

See Brief Summary on next page.

References: 1. Marazzi P. A study to demonstrate the equivalence in efficacy and safety of once-daily nisoldipine CC and amlodipine in the treatment of mild to moderate hypertension. Acta Therapeutica. 1996;22:23-35. 2. Punzi HA, Noveck R, Weiss RJ, et al. Are there differences in the effects of long-acting calcium antagonists on ambulatory blood pressure? Extended-release nisoldipine versus amlodipine as a model. Blood Press Monit. 1998;3:267-272.

Sular is a trademark of Sciele Pharma, Inc.

Geomatrix is a registered trademark of Jagotec AG. Sciele’s use of the Geomatrix technology is under license from SkyePharma.