How to choose expectorant medicine if you can't wait for "cough"? If the medicine has no effect, should I change it? Why should probiotics be taken after meals? Why can't I drink grapefruit juice while taking lipid-lowering drugs? On November 11, the 28 "National Safe Drug Use Month" activity in Jiangsu Province was launched in Nanjing. At the launching ceremony, Zhou Guohua, director of the Department of Clinical Pharmacy, chief pharmacist, professor, doctoral supervisor, and chairman of the Pharmacogenomics Special Committee of the Provincial Pharmaceutical Association, interpreted the top ten drug tips in 2023.
Yangtze Evening News/Purple Cow News reporter Yu Dandan
"Cough" should not be dealt with slowly, and the expectorant should be chosen correctly
Experts remind: When taking expectorants, you should avoid taking strong antitussive drugs at the same time
Recently, there has been a high incidence of respiratory diseases such as the flu, and many patients have a non-stop cough after the fever has subsided. Professor Zhou Guohua said that when the cough cannot drain the sputum smoothly, expectorants can be considered for symptomatic treatment.
Experts remind that expectorants are only one aspect of the treatment of respiratory diseases such as pneumonia and bronchitis, and many times they need to be combined with other drugs for comprehensive treatment. Professor Zhou Guohua emphasized, "When using expectorants, attention should be paid to avoiding the use of strong antitussive drugs at the same time, because expectorants promote sputum discharge by dissolving and diluting viscous sputum and enhancing ciliary movement. ”
What to do if you have diarrhea in autumn, and intervene in time to protect your health
Experts remind: Montmorillonite powder should be fasted and watered within 2 hours after taking the drug
Oral rehydration salts: Oral rehydration salts III are an option for children with diarrhea. When using rehydration salts III, dissolve the complete sachet of rehydration salts in 250 ml of warm boiled water. When it cools, you can heat it with water, and don't add hot water directly to it.
Microecological preparations (live bacteria preparations): probiotics should be taken after meals, and live bacteria preparations can be taken with warm boiled water, but the temperature should not be higher than 40 °C.
Antidiarrheal agents: montmorillonite powder is commonly used. Eating and drinking should be fasted within 2 hours after taking the drug; It is recommended to have an interval of more than 2 hours when combined with general drugs, and when combining antibacterial drugs or microecological preparations, it is recommended to take antibacterial drugs first, and then use montmorillonite powder, and put microecological preparations at the end, with an interval of 1-2 hours.
When a tragic myocardial infarction occurs, scientific prevention is the key
Experts remind: high-risk groups need to take drugs for prevention
There are many factors that affect cardiovascular health, and a large part of them are lifestyle-related. If you want to stay away from cardiovascular disease, you need to pay attention to developing a healthy lifestyle, regular medical check-ups and medication prevention. For high-risk groups, especially those who have had a myocardial infarction, secondary prevention should be actively carried out. Under the guidance of a doctor, you need to choose to take drugs to prevent myocardial infarction and improve the prognosis.
Do not ignore high blood pressure, rational medication does not mess around
Expert reminder: low-dose multi-drug combination is better than high-dose monotherapy
Professor Zhou Guohua introduced, "The use of antihypertensive drugs should be in accordance with the doctor's instructions, starting with small doses, and giving priority to long-acting preparations, which can maintain long-term stability of blood pressure; Combination of drugs, low-dose multi-drug combination is superior to high-dose single drug; Individualized medication should take into account the patient's tolerance and the effectiveness of the drug. ”
Statins commonly used for lipid lowering should pay attention to the time of taking the drug
Experts remind: Do not eat grapefruit while taking the medicine
As the most classic and effective lipid-lowering drugs, statins are widely used in people with hyperlipidemia. Cholesterol synthesis has a circadian rhythm, with the most synthesis at night, so most statins are recommended to be taken before bedtime. For the vast majority of patients, even if their lipids have returned to normal, they need to continue taking statins, but they need to monitor their lipids and other indicators regularly. Statins interact with many medications, so be sure to consult your doctor or pharmacist when using other medications in combination. In addition, do not consume grapefruit or grapefruit juice while taking the drug, as it will increase the damage to the liver and muscles.
Oral drugs are commonly used in children, and different usages should be known
Experts remind: Children under 3 years old should not swallow directly
Granules, dry suspension: need to be stirred and dissolved with warm boiled water before taking.
Oral liquid preparation: use a measuring cup or pour accurately according to the bottle scale, and do not use the mouth to directly touch the bottle for oral use.
Suspensions, syrups and other liquid preparations: the liquid medicine needs to be accurately measured, and it should be shaken well before taking the medicine.
Effervescent tablets: Do not swallow directly, before taking the medicine, you need to add an appropriate amount of warm water to completely dissolve the tablets, and then take it orally after all the bubbles disappear.
Chewable tablets: Chew or suck in the mouth to dissolve and swallow.
Dispersible tablets: If your child is too young to swallow tablets, most dispersible tablets can be dissolved with water and fed.
Eye drops do not need more, 1-2 drops reach the therapeutic amount
Expert reminder: It is recommended to press with your finger after the drop
Always wash your hands thoroughly before dropping eye drops, and try to avoid direct contact with your eyes. The average volume of eye drops per drop is about 40 microliters, which is already exceeding the capacity of the conjunctival sac. Therefore, when the eye drops are dropped, about half of the liquid overflows from the conjunctival vault and flows out of the eye, which is normal. One drop of eye drops has reached the therapeutic dose, and there is no need to increase the dose.
Professor Zhou Guohua suggested that after the eye drops, gently press the nasolacrimal duct at the inner corner of the eye with your fingers for at least 2 minutes to slow down the discharge of the medicine into the nose, so as to increase the efficacy and reduce adverse reactions.
There is a course of drug treatment, and frequent changes in medication disturb the efficacy
Experts remind: Frequent dressing changes can lead to insufficient drug concentration
The effect of a drug depends not only on the drug itself, but also on how the body reacts to the drug. For example, oral drugs need to be absorbed and distributed to reach the corresponding parts, so it takes a certain amount of time for the concentration of the drug to rise in the blood, and even if it reaches the effective concentration, it needs to give the drug time to exert its effect, and it usually cannot be effective immediately. Frequent dressing changes may lead to insufficient drug concentrations and affect the effectiveness of treatment.
There are different types of medications, and some are more effective when chewed
Experts warn: Some digestive aids are suitable for taking half an hour before meals
In general, medicines with the word "chewable tablets" in the name of the medicine are recommended to be taken after chewing thoroughly. Taking it after chewing is conducive to accelerating the release of the drug, thereby accelerating the dissolution and absorption of the drug in the digestive tract to give full play to the effect of the drug.
The main drugs for the digestive system are antacids, gastric mucosal protectors and digestive aids, which need to be chewed and taken. Such as compound aluminum hydroxide, aluminum magnesium carbonate, etc., it is suitable to chew and take half an hour before meals. In emergency situations, nitroglycerin can be chewed and taken sublingually.
Pay attention to taking medicinal water, drink more and drink less
Experts remind: Hydrate in time after taking fever-reducing drugs
There is a particular question about how much water you should drink when taking medicine, and each medicine has its own "optimal water intake", and only when you drink it correctly can you ensure the efficacy of the medicine.
The following drugs should be taken with plenty of water: sulfonamides, quinolone antibacterial drugs such as levofloxacin and moxifloxacin, anti-gout drugs, antipyretic and analgesic drugs such as ibuprofen, and bisphosphonates.
Some drugs have a special mode of effect, and they should drink less water when taking them, such as gastric mucosal protectors, some antidiarrheal drugs, syrup-based cough medicines, etc.