Controversy Alert! Use of Aspirin for Primary Prevention

Geez…take off the boxing gloves! We can talk about this like adults, can’t we? It’s just aspirin for primary prevention of cardiovascular disease! Although perhaps saying it’s “just” aspirin doesn’t quite encompass all the drama… I guess we should explain further in this literature-filled post about good old aspirin.

Clinical, Pharmacy School, Practice, ResidencyStephanie KujawskiJune 8, 2020aspirin, primary prevention, heart disease, ASCVD aspirin, ASCVD risk, secondary prevention, cardiovascular disease prevention, heart attack prevention, when to use aspirin, aspirin CV trials, using aspirin for primary prevention, using aspirin for secondary prevention, aspirin primary prevention trials, aspirin secondary prevention trials

Clinical Trials that May Change What You Were Taught in Pharmacy School: Part 2

We’re back with round 2 of clinical trial updates! And this time, we’re tackling the world of infectious diseases. Come investigate what the most recent literature says about topics like sepsis, bacteremia, and cellulitis, and hone your AST brain!

Clinical, Pharmacy School, Practice, ResidencyStephanie KujawskiMay 25, 2020antibiotic updates, antimicrobial stewardship, how to manage sepsis, how long to treat cellulitis, double MRSA coverage, MRSA bacteremia antibiotics, CAMERA-2 trial, DANCE trial, VITAMINS trial, sepsis bundle, surviving sepsis campaign

Everything You Need to Know about Tumor Lysis Syndrome

If you thought learning Chemo Man was all the oncology you’d ever need, guess what…there’s more! Whether you practice (or want to practice) in oncology or you’re in general medicine, baseline knowledge of tumor lysis syndrome is essential. Let tl;dr give you the scoop on this explosive, gotta-know topic!

Clinical, Pharmacy School, Practice, ResidencyStephanie KujawskiMay 10, 2020TLS, what is tumor lysis syndrome, drugs that cause tumor lysis, how to prevent tumor lysis syndrome, treatment of tumor lysis syndrome, uric acid, allopurinol, febuxostat, rasburicase

A Pharmaceutics Primer on Slow Release Drugs

It’s the dreaded question about crushing that tablet. Of course, the answer’s not in the package insert, so what are YOU supposed to do? Guess what, tl;dr is here with some clues about how to figure out if and when it just might be ok to bend the crushing rules (or not).

Clinical, Pharmacy School, Practice, ResidencySamuel OhApril 13, 2020can tablets be crushed, can capsules be opened, administration instructions for delayed release, extended versus delayed release, ISMP do not crush list, inactive ingredients in medications, pharmaceutics drug formulations, modified release drug formulations, sr vs lr

PCSK9 Inhibitors: What You Need to Know

PC…PCS…PCSK9 inhibitors! Yes, there are a lot of letters, and we ALL have a hard time keeping them in the right order. But why is this class of medications popping up more and more, and why should we FINALLY learn to keep the letters straight? For those times when maybe statins aren’t The Answer to Everything, we’re here with the rundown on this novel class of medications that you may have missed since pharmacy school!

Clinical, Pharmacy School, Practice, ResidencyStephanie KujawskiMarch 9, 2020PCSK9 inhibitors, how to treat cholesterol in patients intolerant of statins, what if statins aren't enough for cholesterol, statins myalgia alternatives, add on therapy for cholesterol, hyperlipidemia management in high risk patients, alirocumab evolocumab lipids, new drugs for cholesterol, when to use pcsk9 inhibitors, pcsk9 inhibitor clinical pearls, pcsk9 inhibitor monitoring, pcsk9 inhibitor administration

Migraine Management: Beyond the Triptans

If you learned that migraine management begins and ends with triptans (and maybe you got lost trying to keep all of those meds straight), you’re in for a treat! It’s not too often the pharmacy world gets to talk about an entirely new class of medications, but today is that day. It’s time to chat about CGRP inhibitors!

Clinical, Pharmacy School, Practice, ResidencyStephanie KujawskiFebruary 24, 2020medications for migraines, how to stop a migraine, chronic migraine treatment, CGRP inhibitors, Aimovig migraine, Emgality migraine, headache treatment, mabs for migraines, new class of medications for migraine prevention

Clinical Trials That May Change What You Were Taught in Pharmacy School: Part 1

You went to class. You memorized all those guidelines. You figured you were good to go for a while, right? Maaaybe, but more than likely there’s new published info since you took those tests! Let tl;dr give you a heads up on some of the biggest therapeutic breakthroughs of the last couple months. And don’t worry - you CAN teach an old dog new tricks!

Clinical, Pharmacy School, Practice, ResidencyStephanie KujawskiFebruary 10, 2020evidence based medicine, EBM, what's new in heart failure treatment, updates in stroke prevention, recent medication studies 2019, studies that have changed therapeutic guidelines, DAPT for secondary stroke prevention, SGLT-2 cardiovascular benefits, how to journal club a drug trial, evaluating new medical literature, new FDA drug approvals

Biosimilars - A User Friendly Guide

You’ve heard about them in the news. Now get up to speed with biosimilars and what they mean to your practice. Are they just like “generics?” Find out here.

Clinical, Pharmacy School, Practice, ResidencyBrandon DysonJanuary 16, 2020what is a biosimilar, biosimilar vs generic, what is a biologic, biosimilar naming guide, biosimilar names, how are biosimilars made, biosimilar clinical pearls, generic vs biosimilar

Complications of Cirrhosis: Part 2

After a brief break from the liver, tl;dr is back with yet a few more complications of cirrhosis (the maze of liver effects continues!). In this installment, learn about hepatic encephalopathy and variceal bleeding with a little help from everyone’s favorite hobbit.

Clinical, Pharmacy School, Practice, ResidencyStephanie KujawskiJanuary 13, 2020complications of cirrhosis, how to treat hepatic encephalopathy, titrating lactulose, miralax for hepatic encephalopathy, how to prevent variceal bleeds, antibiotics in variceal bleeds, nadolol and propranolol after GI bleed, measuring ammonia levels in hepatic encephalopathy, what is asterixis

Is Pharmacy Residency the Right Path for You?

ASHP’s Midyear Meeting is right around the corner, and many of you are feeling the pressure of The Decision: should you pursue a pharmacy residency? In order to help you make the most informed choice, tl;dr is here with a couple additional facts and figures for you to weigh when considering all possibilities.

Pharmacy School, Professional, ResidencyStephanie KujawskiDecember 2, 2019pharmacy residency, opportunity cost, career path, deciding about residency, post graduation, financial impact, should I do a residency?, how to get a residency, how to get a pharmacy residency, pharmacy residency opportunity cost, pharmacy residency tips, pharmacy residency not worth it

A Quick Guide to the Most Commonly Used OTC Meds

A-CHOO!! Bless you. It’s that time of year again, folks. Let tl;dr help you with every runny nose, watery eye, and exploding head that walks through the pharmacy front door. Plus, bonus, we’re gonna talk about BMs!

Rebalancing with Antipsychotics

It’s often easy for us to see cause and effect with medications for blood pressure or infections. But what about when the drug action isn’t so immediate and defined? How do we navigate those medications? This post is all about giving you the foundation for determining defining characteristics of a somewhat less black and white class of medications.