The FDA has approved Menveo (Novartis), a new quadrivalent conjugated polysaccharide vaccine, for protection against disease caused by Neisseria meningitidis in people 11-55 years old.

The recent Medical Letter article on vancomycin dosing and monitoring briefly mentioned use of an alternative antibiotic for treatment of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) with reduced susceptibility to vancomycin. Some readers have asked for more information on this subject.

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Web sites and blogs are advising patients that periodic "cleansing" of the colon is necessary to rid the body of toxins.

Atrial fibrillation increases the risk of stroke by a factor of 5. A randomized controlled trial (ACTIVE W) in 6706 patients with atrial fibrillation and one or more additional risk factors (≥75 years old; hypertension; previous stroke, transient ischemic attack or non- CNS embolus; left ventricular ejection fraction <45%; peripheral vascular disease; or 55-74 years old plus diabetes or coronary artery disease) found that a vitamin K antagonist such as warfarin (Coumadin, and others) was superior to clopidogrel (Plavix) plus aspirin in preventing vascular events, especially ischemic...

The FDA, which had previously approved intravenous (IV) administration of 5 mg of zoledronic acid (Reclast – Novartis) once a year for treatment of postmenopausal osteoporosis (Med Lett Drugs Ther 2007; 49:89), has now approved the same dose for use once every 2 years to prevent osteoporosis in postmenopausal women with osteopenia.Clinical Studies – In an unpublished study summarized in the package insert, 224 women with osteopenia ≤5 years after menopause were given an IV infusion of zoledronic acid 5 mg or placebo; 2 years later, total hip bone mineral density (BMD) had increased by...

The FDA has approved cariprazine (Vraylar – Actavis), an oral, once-daily, second-generation antipsychotic, for treatment of schizophrenia and for acute treatment of manic or mixed episodes associated with bipolar I disorder.

TThe FDA has licensed mResvia (Moderna), an mRNA respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) vaccine, for prevention of lower respiratory tract disease (LRTD) caused by RSV in adults ≥60 years old. It is the first mRNA vaccine to be licensed in the US for this indication. Two recombinant RSV vaccines, Arexvy and Abrysvo, are also available for prevention of RSV LRTD. Arexvy is approved for use in adults ≥50 years old. Abrysvo is approved for use in adults ≥60 years old and in pregnant women to prevent RSV LRTD in their infants.

(Med Lett Drugs Ther 2008; 50:94) In Table 1, "Invasive" should be "less" and "more" rather than "no" and "yes" for CT colonography and colonoscopy, respectively. In the conclusion, CT colonography should be changed to "less invasive" rather than "noninvasive".

The Medical Letter was founded in 1959 by Arthur Kallet, an engineer, and Dr. Harold Aaron, an internist. In 1932, Kallet had written the book 100,000,000 Guinea Pigs, a best-seller that was partly responsible for the Food and Drug Act of 1938, which required for the first time that new drugs show proof of safety. He was the founding director of Consumers Union and started the publication of Consumer Reports. Dr. Aaron, who became the medical director of Consumer Reports, suggested to Kallet that doctors could use a similar publication to evaluate the new drugs that were coming on the market...

(Med Lett Drugs Ther 2009; 51:25) In the paragraph on dosing, the second-to-last sentence should have said that the new recommendations suggest considering use of an alternative antibiotic when the MIC for the infecting organism is ≥2 mg/L, not >2 mg/L.