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Category: Primary Care

Drugs in Context Primary Care welcomes a broad range of article types including original research, study protocols and review articles.

In line with the principle of providing context for healthcare professionals (HCPs) to properly inform and improve disease management in real world medicine, we especially encourage the submission of articles that provide context for trials of drug interventions in order to motivate improvements in disease management by HCPs practising medicine in the front line.

Empagliflozin: a new sodium-glucose co-transporter 2 (SGLT2) inhibitor for the treatment of type 2 diabetes

Joshua J Neumiller

Article Type

Review

Published

11 Jun 2014

Type 2 diabetes is increasing in prevalence worldwide, and hyperglycemia is often poorly controlled despite a number of therapeutic options.

Unlike previously available agents, sodium-glucose co-transporter 2 inhibitors offer an insulin-independent mechanism for improving blood glucose levels, since they promote urinary glucose excretion by inhibiting glucose reabsorption in the kidney.

In this article, the author discusses empagliflozin and based on available data, it appears that this drug may be a useful option in a range of patients; however, clinical decisions will be better informed by the results of ongoing studies, in particular, a large cardiovascular outcome study (EMPA-REG OUTCOME™).

Study protocol for a randomized, controlled trial comparing the efficacy of two educational interventions to improve inhalation techniques in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD): TIEPOC Study.

José Leiva-Fernández, Francisca Leiva-Fernández, Rubén L Vázquez-Alarcón, Antonio García-Ruiz, Daniel Prados-Torres, Pilar Barnestein-Fonseca

Article Type

Case Report

Published

24 Apr 2014

Up to 75% of patients with COPD do not use a correct inhaler technique. In this article, the authors provide details of a study protocol for a randomized controlled trial to test the efficacy of two educational interventions aimed at improving inhalation techniques in a cohort of patients in southern Spain.

The non-anticoagulation costs of atrial fibrillation management: findings from an observational study in NHS Primary Care

George Kassianos, Chris Arden, Simon Hogan, Laura Baldock, Ahmet Fuat

Article Type

Original Research

Published

09 Apr 2014

Atrial fibrillation (AF) management represents a significant burden on the UK NHS. In this article the authors review data from 825 patients in routine UK clinical practice and describe the non-anticoagulation costs associated with AF management. Understanding these costs better may help inform future health care planning and policy development.

Initial combination therapy for patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus: considerations for metformin plus linagliptin

Jeffrey Freeman

Article Type

Case Report

Published

21 Aug 2013

In this article the author discusses the implications for clinical practice of the results of a recent Phase III trial. He concludes that initial combination of linagliptin plus metformin which was found to be weight neutral, well tolerated and associated with a low frequency of hypoglycaemia, may have advantages for a large proportion of patients with type 2 diabetes, particularly those with a relatively high HbA1c at diagnosis.

Optimizing glycemic control and minimizing the risk of hypoglycemia in patients with type 2 diabetes

Stanley S Schwartz

Article Type

Case Report

Published

22 May 2013

In this article the author argues that in type 2 diabetes, an approach that emphasizes diet and exercise and features a treatment regimen tailored to the needs of the individual to reach glycemic targets is warranted in most patients and provides microvascular and cardiovascular benefit, provided that hypoglycemia is avoided.