Colds prophylaxis

Codeine, dextromethorphan and pholcodine are opioid cough suppressants indicated for dry cough. Sedating antihistamines, such as diphenhydramine, tend to have an antitussive action as well. Vitamin C is not used in the management of cough but may be used as a prophylaxis against colds. 

Aciclovir is an antiviral indicated in the treatment and prophylaxis of cold sores. It is available for systemic administration (tablets) or topical use (cream, eye ointment). In the management of cold sores, the cream is applied every 4 hours and continued for 5 days. Its use should be started as soon as symptoms (tingling sensation) begin. 

Amifostine (Elhyol) [Antineoplastic/Thiophosphate Cytoprotective] Uses Xerostomia prophylaxis during RT (head, neck, ovarian, NSCLQ -I- renal tox w/ rqjeated cisplatin Action Prodrug, dqjhosphorylated by alkaline phosphatase to active thiol metabohte Dose 910 mg/mVd 15-min IV inf 30 min prior to chemo Caution [C, +/—] CV Dz Disp Inj SE Transient X BP (>60%), NA, flushing w/ hot or cold chills, dizziness, X Ca % somnolence, sneezing Notes Does not -1- effectiveness of cyclophosphamide + cisplatin chemo Interactions T Effects W/ antih5 pertensives EMS Monitor BP for hypotension OD Severe hypotension treat w/IV fluids... 

Valacyclovir is indicated for the treatment of herpes zoster (shingles), for the treatment of initial and recurrent episodes of genital herpes, and for the suppression of recurrent genital herpes in immunocompetent and HIV-infected patients. It is also indicated for the reduction of transmission of genital herpes in immunocompetent individuals, and for the treatment of cold sores. Valacyclovir appears to be equally effective in treating herpes zoster and recurrent genital herpes in immunocompetent adults. Valacyclovir has shown efficacy in the prophylaxis of cytomegalovirus infections in transplant patients (Perry and Faulds, 1996). 

Echinacea species (coneflower, black Sampson hedgehog, Indian head, snakeroot, red sunflower, scurvy root) have become increasingly popular, particularly for the prophylaxis and treatment and prevention of cold and flu symptoms. However, the claimed efficacy of Echinacea in the common cold has not been confirmed in a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial (20) or a systematic review (21). Echinacea is claimed to have antiseptic and antiviral properties and is under investigation for its immunostimulant action. The active ingredients are glycosides (echinacoside), polysaccharides, alkamides, and flavonoids. 

Several problems still remain, providing scope for future research in this held. First, the successful treatment of influenza with neuraminidase inhibitors requires the drugs to be taken at a very early stage of the infection because they are ineffective once an influenza infection has developed the full symptoms. This is not always practical, however, since it is often difficult to distinguish the early symptoms of influenza from those of a common cold. Second, it is questionable whether the shortening of the disease by 1 day justifles the high cost of treatment with these neuraminidase inhibitors. The cost factor would be even more dramatic if these agents were to be used for extended influenza prophylaxis [40d]. 

Such prophylaxis has been almost universally available in the developed countries for the past quarter of the century, and the two most common reasons for seeking medical attention and therapy are respiratory tract infections and herpes infections, for which there are no effective vaccines. Around 35% of all acute medical illness can be ascribed to the common cold and a further 40% to influenza. In addition, the sexual freedom of the past 40 years... 

As with influenza, the brevity of the incubation period and the fact that by the time the first symptoms appear, the virus will already be present in large amounts, means that prophylaxis and treatment are difficult. Add to this the fact that the cold may be due to another type of virus, for example, an adenovirus (a DNA virus) or a respiratory syncitial virus, and the problems appear insuperable. And indeed, at present, no drugs have reached the marketplace. The rhinoviruses are RNA-(+)-viruses and have two principal viral enzymes an RNA polymerase and a protease, but although a number of potential enzyme inhibitory drugs have been evaluated in clinical trials, none has reached the marketplace. 

VADSTEiN 0, MO T A and BERGH 0 (2004) Microbial interactions, prophylaxis and diseases, in Moksness E, Kjorsvik E and Olsen Y (eds). Culture of Cold-Water Marine Fish. Oxford Blackwell, 28-72. 

Commonly used drugs, dietary constituents and food additives may be electroactive and consequently are potential sources of interference when biological samples are analysed. Quinine may originate from tonic water, for example, caffeine from coffee and cafifeinated soft drinks and some proprietary stimulants, nicotine and cotinine from tobacco smoke, chloroquine and related compounds from malaria prophylaxis, and pholcodine and other opiate analogues from cold cures. Many such compounds and their metabolites will show an EC response at carbon electrodes under appropriate conditions and can be sources of confusion if unrecognised. 

A further study included trials with no replicates and contained six studies. It showed that in ve out of six cases, the main outcomes were positive however, these were limited to very speci c criteria, such as small airways resistance for common colds (Cohen and Dressier, 1982), prophylaxis of bronchi for bronchitis (Ferley et ah, 1989), lessening smoking withdrawal symptoms... 

A proposed European monograph indicates use for prophylaxis of atheroselerosis treatment of elevated blood lipid levels influenced by diet improvement of arterial vascular disease blood flow and use for relief of coughs, colds, catarrh, and rhinitis (escop 2). 

For many years, toxoids, which are immunologically active but non-toxic derivatives of toxins, have been used as in the prophylaxis and treatment of bacterial toxin-related diseases. These include notably diphtheria and botulism. Toxins must be produced as an essential precursor to the production of antitoxins and thus potential stocks of toxins exist from this route, which are produced in large-scale fermentation tanks. The existence of such stocks, which were outside the existing Chemical Weapons Convention, was the initial source of suspicion that toxins were being developed for use as toxic agents by the Soviet Union during the Cold War in the 1980s. 

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