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It’s Time for Spring Cleaning

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The temperature outside may not feel like Spring, but our clocks have moved forward and our days are getting longer. You may be cleaning out closets and doing your annual window washing, but are you taking the time to clean out your medicine cabinet, too?
In 1979, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) began requiring an expiration date on prescription and over-the counter medicines. “The medicine expiration date is a critical part of deciding if the product is safe to use and will work as intended,” says Ilisa Bernstein, Pharm.D., J.D., Deputy Director of the Office of Compliance in FDA’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research. The expiration date can be found printed on the label or stamped onto the bottle or carton, sometimes following “EXP.” It is important to know and stick to the expiration date on your medicine. Using expired medical products is risky and possibly harmful to your health.

Expired medicines can be risky

Expired medications can be less effective or risky due to a change in chemical composition or a decrease in strength. Certain expired medications are at risk of bacterial growth, and sub-potent antibiotics can fail to treat infections, leading to more serious illnesses and antibiotic resistance. “Once the expiration date has passed there is no guarantee that the medicine will be safe and effective,” says Bernstein. “If your medicine has expired, do not use it.”
In addition, many Americans may not be not aware that medicines that sit in their medicine cabinets are highly susceptible to diversion, misuse, and abuse. With the rise of prescription drug abuse in the United States, the number of accidental poisonings and overdoses has dramatically increased. Oftentime, the abused prescription drugs are unknowingly obtained from family and friends, whether taking medications out of a purse, or a home medicine cabinet.
Finally, expired medicines are also not just a risk to the person they were prescribed for —they can injure children and pets if taken by mistake. For all these reasons, proper disposal of unneeded and expired medicines is essential!

What to do with expired meds

First, read the medicine’s label and follow any specific disposal instructions that may be included. A drug take-back program, if available, is the preferred way to dispose of expired, unwanted or unused medicine. From 10am – 2pm on April 28th at Village Pharmacy in Hampstead, we are participating in the National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day. The event addresses a vital public safety and public health issue by focusing attention on the importance of keeping your communities safe and reminding everyone to get rid of unneeded and outdated medicines. Through this important program many tons of unneeded and out-date drugs have been removed for proper disposal.
When drug take-back programs aren’t available, federal guidelines recommend throwing the medicines away in the household trash after mixing them with a substance like dirt or kitty litter and then sealing the mixture in a container like a zipper baggie.
Follow these instructions for disposing of most medications in the household trash:

  1. Mix medicines (do not crush tablets or capsules) with an unpalatable substance like dirt, kitty litter, or used coffee grounds.
  2. Place the mixture in a container such as a sealed plastic bag.
  3. Throw the container in your household trash.
  4. Scratch out all personal information on the prescription label of your empty pill bottle or empty medicine packaging to make it unreadable, then dispose of the container.

For a list of medicines recommended for disposal by flushing, as well as other information on proper disposal, please see the FDA’s Disposal of Unused Medicines page.

A place for everything

Proper storage is one way to help make sure your medicines will remain safe and effective up to their expiration date. Be sure to read the label to see if there are specific storage instructions for your medicine. Certain medicines need to be stored in the refrigerator and others cannot be exposed to high temperatures. Improper storage – such as a damp bathroom cabinet – can contribute to decreased effectiveness in medicines that have not reached their posted expiration date. For most medicines, to help ensure the proper shelf life of your medicine, it is better to store medicine in a cool, dry place such as a dresser drawer, storage box, closet shelf, or kitchen cabinet.
When storing medicine in a kitchen cabinet make sure that it is away from hot appliances and the sink due to changing temperatures and humidity, which can affect the medicine. When storing medicine in a high traffic area, like a kitchen, care should be taken to prevent access by children at risk of accidental poisoning or others who may be tempted to take for abuse/misuse.
Remember to store medicines properly and don’t use expired medicines — it’s not worth the risk!
Hope to see you on April 28th!

Source: FDA and WebMD

Preventing Traumatic Brain Injuries

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Tramatic brain injuries (TBI) are most well known to affect athletes, but they can impact anyone. A TBI occurs when physical, external forces impact the brain either from a penetrating object or a bump, blow, or jolt to the head. Not all blows or jolts to the head result in a TBI. For the ones that do, TBIs can range from mild (a brief change in mental status or consciousness) to severe (an extended period of unconsciousness or amnesia after the injury).
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), falls are the most common cause of TBIs and occur most frequently among the youngest and oldest age groups. From 2006 to 2010 alone, falls caused more than half (55 percent) of TBIs among children aged 14 and younger. Among Americans age 65 and older, falls accounted for more than two-thirds (81 percent) of all reported TBIs.
Unintentional blunt trauma includes sports-related injuries, which are also a major cause of TBI. Overall, bicycling, football, playground activities, basketball, and soccer result in the most TBI-related emergency room visits. The cause of these injuries does vary slightly by gender. According to the CDC, among children age 10 to 19, boys are most often injured while playing football or bicycling. Among girls, TBI occur most often while playing soccer or basketball or while bicycling. Anywhere from 1.6 million to 3.8 million sports- and recreation-related TBIs are estimated to occur in the United States annually.
Adults age 65 and older are at greatest risk for being hospitalized and dying from a TBI, most likely from a fall. TBI-related deaths in children aged 4 years and younger are most likely the result of assault. In young adults aged 15 to 24 years, motor vehicle accidents are the most likely cause. In every age group, serious TBI rates are higher for men than for women. Men are more likely to be hospitalized and are nearly three times more likely to die from a TBI than women.
The effects of TBI can range from severe and permanent disability to more subtle functional and cognitive difficulties that often go undetected during initial evaluation. These problems may emerge days later. Headache, dizziness, confusion, and fatigue tend to start immediately after an injury, but resolve over time. Emotional symptoms such as frustration and irritability tend to develop later on during the recovery period. Many of the signs and symptoms can be easily missed as people may appear healthy even though they act or feel different. Many of the symptoms overlap with other conditions, such as depression or sleep disorders. If any of the following symptoms appear suddenly or worsen over time following a TBI, especially within the first 24 hours after the injury, people should see a medical professional on an emergency basis.
People should seek immediate medical attention if they experience any of the following symptoms:

  • loss of or change in consciousness anywhere from a few seconds to a few hours
  • decreased level of consciousness, i.e., hard to awaken
  • convulsions or seizures
  • unequal dilation in the pupils of the eyes or double vision
  • clear fluids draining from the nose or ears
  • nausea and vomiting
  • new neurologic deficit, such as slurred speech; weakness of arms, legs, or face; loss of balance

Other common symptoms that should be monitored include:

  • mild to profound confusion or disorientation
  • problems remembering, concentrating, or making decisions
  • headache
  • light-headedness, dizziness, vertigo, or loss of balance or coordination
  • sensory problems, such as blurred vision, seeing stars, ringing in the ears, bad taste in the mouth
  • sensitivity to light or sound
  • mood changes or swings, agitation (feeling sad or angry for no reason), combativeness, or other unusual behavior
  • feelings of depression or anxiety
  • fatigue or drowsiness; a lack of energy or motivation
  • changes in sleep patterns (e.g., sleeping a lot more or having difficulty falling or staying asleep); inability to wake up from sleep

Studies suggest that age and the number of head injuries a person has suffered over his or her lifetime are two critical factors that impact recovery. For example, TBI-related brain swelling in children can be very different from the same condition in adults, even when the primary injuries are similar. Brain swelling in newborns, young infants, and teenagers often occurs much more quickly than it does in older individuals. Evidence suggests that younger people (ages 20 to 40) tend to have behavioral and mood change, while those who are older (ages 50+) have more cognitive difficulties.
Compared with younger adults with the same TBI severity, older adults are likely to have less complete recovery. Older people also have more medical issues and are often taking multiple medications that may complicate treatment (e.g., blood-thinning agents when there is a risk of bleeding into the head). Further research is needed to determine if and how treatment strategies may need to be adjusted based on a person’s age.
The best treatment for TBI is prevention. According to the CDC, doing the following can help prevent TBIs:

  • Wear a seatbelt when you drive or ride in a motor vehicle.
  • Wear the correct helmet and make sure it fits properly when riding a bicycle, skateboarding, and playing sports like hockey and football.
  • Install window guards and stair safety gates at home for young children.
  • Never drive under the influence of drugs or alcohol.
  • Improve lighting and remove rugs, clutter, and other trip hazards.
  • Use non-slip mats and install grab bars next to the toilet and in the tub or shower for older adults.
  • Use handrails on stairways.
  • Use a cane or walker to provide stability for older adults as needed.
  • Improve balance and strength with a regular physical activity program.
  • Ensure children’s playgrounds are made of shock-absorbing material, such as hardwood mulch or sand.

We have a number of Nova at-home safety equipment at our stores. From shower benches and grab bars, to canes and walkers, we can help make your home safer.

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