Over the counter

Nonsteroidal 2-arylproprionic acids are widely used, over-the-counter, anti-inflammatory drugs. Photosensitivity is a commonly overlooked adverse effect of these drugs. Based on the combined use of cell viability assays and molecular modeling, we prove and rationalize the photochemical pathways triggering photosensitization for two drugs, ibuprofen and ketoprofen. As its parent compound benzophenone, ketoprofen produces singlet oxygen, upon triplet manifold population. However, ibuprofen and ketoprofen photodissociate and hence may generate two highly reactive radicals...

Diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) is a well-established magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) technique used for studying microstructural changes in the white matter. As with many other imaging modalities, DTI images suffer from technical between-scanner variation that hinders comparisons of images across imaging sites, scanners and over time. Using fractional anisotropy (FA) and mean diffusivity (MD) maps of 205 healthy participants acquired on two different scanners, we show that the DTI measurements are highly site-specific, highlighting the need of correcting for site effects before performing downstream statistical analyses...

Cell division is compromised in DnaAcos mutant Escherichia coli cells that results in filamentous cell morphology. This is countered by over-expression of CedA protein that induces cytokinesis and thus, regular cell morphology is regained; however via an unknown mechanism. To understand the process systematically, exact role of CedA should be deciphered. Protein interactions are crucial for functional organization of a cell and their identification helps in revealing exact function(s) of a protein and its binding partners...

OBJECTIVE: To examine the association between nonmedical use of over-the-counter medications (NMUOTC) and nonmedical use of prescription drugs (NMUPD). PARTICIPANTS: University students surveyed on NMUOTC and NMUPD between August and December 2011 (N = 939). METHODS: Cross-sectional data analysis of online survey. RESULTS: The majority of respondents were female, undergraduate, Caucasian, and not affiliated with Greek life...

Aims and method To systematically review the prevalence and associated factors of burnout and stress-related psychiatric disorders among UK doctors. An extensive search was conducted of PubMed, EBSCOhost and British medical journals for studies published over a 20-year span measuring the prevalence of psychiatric morbidity (using the General Health Questionnaire) and burnout (using the Maslach Burnout Inventory). Results Prevalence of psychiatric morbidity ranged from 17 to 52%. Burnout scores for emotional exhaustion ranged from 31 to 54...

Alanine aminotransferase (ALT) is the most common and cost effective screening test for asymptomatic liver disease. There is paucity of data on normal ALT among healthy individuals in India. An observational cross sectional study was conducted from January to July 2013 to estimate the upper limit of normal for ALT in healthy south Indian population. Adults undergoing voluntary or pre-employment health screening were included. Those with current and past alcoholism or smoking, acute illness or hospitalization during preceding 12 months, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory or over the counter medication use within a month, current or past intake of herbal medications, any chronic medical illness, abnormal body mass index (BMI), fatty liver in ultrasound, abnormality in haemoglobin, platelet count, blood sugar, creatinine, lipid profile and thyroid function test and positive serology (Hepatitis B, C or HIV) were excluded...

Amino acids playing important roles in metabolic processes are often included in dietary supplements whose use has largely expanded over the last 20 years not only in patients with particular deficiencies, but also in athletes and even common people that want to enrich their regular daily diet. In the present study, a bare silica Kinetex core-shell 2.6μm HILIC column was used for separation of some important hydrophilic amino acids and amino acids-like molecules i.e., aspartic acid, creatine, carnitine, arginine and the tripeptide glutathione (GSH), by optimizing the chromatographic conditions for their determination in complex alimentary supplements...

In avian brood parasitism, both the host and the parasite are expected to develop various conflicting adaptations; hosts develop a defense against parasitism, such as an ability to recognize and reject parasitic eggs that look unlike their own, while parasites evolve egg mimicry to counter this host defense. Hosts may further evolve to generate various egg phenotypes that are not mimicked by parasites. Difference in egg phenotype critically affects the successful reproduction of hosts and parasites. Recent studies have shown that clear polymorphism in egg phenotype is observed in several host-parasite interactions, which suggests that egg polymorphism may be a more universal phenomenon than previously thought...

Background: Electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes) are battery-powered devices that deliver aerosolized nicotine. With easy access and over-the-counter availability, many patients consider using electronic cigarettes for smoking cessation. Few studies have looked at long-term safety/efficacy and physician knowledge/attitudes toward e-cigarettes. Physicians have insufficient guidelines for advising their patients about e-cigarettes. Objective: 1) To identify knowledge and attitude of health care practitioners toward electronic cigarettes...

OBJECTIVES: Record femoral accelerations using a smartphone accelerometer attached to the distal thigh during single-legged (SLS) and bilateral squats, and each squat condition occurred under two visual conditions: 1) normal vision and 2) visual perturbation with stroboscopic glasses. DESIGN: Repeated-measures cross-over with counter-balanced order for four total conditions. SETTING: Laboratory. PARTICIPANTS: 22 females and 16 males without lower extremity pathologies...

Regulations usually distinguish between prescription-only (POM) and over-the-counter (OTC) medicines. The former requires medical prescription; the latter are available for SM of common minor or easily treated ailments. However, in the Eastern Mediterranean countries, theoretical prescription medicines can easily be purchased without a prescription, as self-medication (SM) resulting in potential misuse and unnecessary risk for patients. The magnitude of this activity is uncertain. The aim of this article, therefore, is to undertake a comprehensive review to identify the different types of medicines that can easily be purchased as SM in Middle East and recognized as misused...

'Fragile skin', or skin with lower resistance to aggressors, can be broadly classified into four causal categories: constitutional (age-dependent or associated with specific vulnerable locations on the body, e.g. eyelids), pathological (related to disease), circumstantial (related to environmental or internal factors, e.g. stress) and iatrogenic (caused by medical interventions or treatments). In this supplement, we focus on the fourth category, the iatrogenic origin of fragile skin and the role that dermo-cosmetics can have in restoring the natural protective function of the skin following treatments for skin diseases and medical interventions...

AIM: Transdermal lidocaine therapy has become a gold standard as part of a treatment regimen for patients who suffer from localized pain. We compared transdermal patches: over-the-counter (OTC) lidocaine 3.6% combined with menthol 1.25%, prescription lidocaine 5% (Rx) and placebo. METHODS: In a double-blind, placebo-controlled trial, 87 patients were randomized to: OTC, Rx or placebo. RESULTS: OTC met primary end points of noninferiority compared with Rx for efficacy, side effects and quality of life...

The declaration of a caliphate by Islamic State in June 2014 witnessed the recruitment of increasing numbers of foreign terrorist fighters drawn from a diverse range of nations across the globe. This paper seeks to explore the appeal of extreme groups and how recruiters persuade young people to risk either their lives or lengthy terms of imprisonment. The processes of radicalization and recruitment are differentiated and compared with conventional means of encouraging individuals to enlist in state-sanctioned armed forces...

BACKGROUND: Over-the-counter medications are widely available in pharmacies Their safety profile, however, does not extend to pregnant women. Accordingly, there should be educational programs developed for pregnant women to protect them from the harms of the side effects. AIM: This study was planned and designed with the aim of exploring the awareness and assessing the usage of OTC medications among pregnant women in Sharjah, UAE. METHOD: A cross-sectional survey using a self-administered questionnaire...

Higenamine is a key component of traditional Chinese herbal medicine. The fruit of Nandina domestica (which contains this component) is available as an ingredient in the so-called Nanten-nodo-ame throat lozenge found on the Japanese market, which is an over-the-counter pharmaceutical and is easy to purchase for Japanese athletes. However, higenamine is a non-selective β2-agonist, which is exemplified in the prohibited list of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA). Therefore, some have raised a concern regarding the potential cause of increased unintentional higenamine doping cases in the Asian region...

BACKGROUND: Anti-doping activities are carried out on a global scale. Based on these activities, the specialty of "sports pharmacist," which entails a deeper comprehension of doping, use of supplements, and appropriate drug use for athletes, was established in 2009 in Japan. It is difficult to say whether the education on doping is adequate for pharmacy students who will be eligible to become sports pharmacists. It is also unclear how well these students understand doping. Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate pharmacy students' current knowledge of appropriate drug use, doping and use of supplements, and to explore the need for further education on these topics...

Crime is a major threat to society's well-being but lacks a statistical characterization that could lead to uncovering some of its underlying mechanisms. Evidence of nonlinear scaling of urban indicators in cities, such as wages and serious crime, has motivated the understanding of cities as complex systems-a perspective that offers insights into resources limits and sustainability, but that usually neglects details of the indicators themselves. Notably, since the nineteenth century, criminal activities have been known to occur unevenly within a city; crime concentrates in such way that most of the offenses take place in few regions of the city...

Cross stacking of nanopatterned conductive polymer film was explored using a sacrificial soft template made of nanopatterned polystyrene (PS) film as a guide for nanopatterned conductive polymer film. For use as a conductive film, the PS pattern was filled with poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT), and then completely removed, to generate single-patterned PEDOT (SPDOT) film having a conductivity of 1079 S/cm, which was comparable to the pristine unpatterned PEDOT (UPDOT) film on a glass slide. SPDOT layers were stacked across each other to form double-layered (DPDOT) and multiple-layered patterned PEDOT film on a glass slide or polymeric substrate...

The production of cells capable of carrying multiple transgenes to Mb-size genomic loci has multiple applications in biomedicine and biotechnology. In order to achieve this goal, three key steps are required: i) Cloning of large genomic segments; ii) Insertion of multiple DNA blocks at a precise location and iii) The capability to eliminate the assembled region from cells. In this study, we designed the Iterative Integration System (IIS) that utilizes recombinases Cre, ΦC31 and ΦBT1, and combined it with Human Artificial Chromosome (HAC) possessing a regulated kinetochore (alphoid(tetO)-HAC)...