Drug Labels Offer Little Guidance on Dosing for Obese
Pediatric Patients
A significant percentage of pediatric patients are obese, which affects how medications are absorbed and processed. Yet according to a new survey, drug labels seldom offer any advice on how weight issues affect dosages in children and adolescents. Here are more details.

Burdensome Preauthorization Process Limits Prescriptions for PCSK9 Inhibitors for Hypercholesterolemia
While a new class of drugs has been approved for patients with familial hypercholesterolemia, as well as those whose high cholesterol has been unsuccessfully treated by other medications, relatively few prescriptions actually get filled. A new study explains why: burdensome prior-authorization requirements. Find out how much more clinicians have to do to prescribe PCSK9 inhibitors than other pricey drugs.

Length of Usage, not Dosage, Appears to Have Greatest Effect on Postsurgical Opioid Misuse
Compared with bupropion monotherapy, augmentation with aripiprazole resulted in a statistically significant but only modestly increased likelihood of remission during the 12 weeks of treatment compared. What type of adverse effects occurred?

Use of Folic Acid, Multivitamins by Expectant Mothers Appears to Lower Autism Risk in Offspring
A new study suggests a possible way to reduce the risk of autism spectrum disorder. The observational study found that women who used folic acid and multivitamins before and during pregnancy had a lower risk of giving birth to children who developed the condition. Authors caution, however, that their findings need further proof. Here are the details.