Drug Therapy

Alexandria, VA--There is no one clear screening test for interstitial cystitis, and its diagnosis remains one of exclusion.

The U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois has issued an order granting Atrix Laboratories' motion to stay the patent infringement suit filed by TAP Pharmaceutical Products, Inc., Takeda Chemical Industries, Ltd., and Wako Pure Chemical Industries, Ltd., according to an Atrix press release.

Use of the popular seasonal allergy drug loratadine (Claritin) in early pregnancy does not influence the occurrence of hypospadias in infants, according to a report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The FDA has approved the Prolieve Thermodilatation system for the treatment of BPH symptoms.

Pfizer Inc. has ended its research into sildenafil citrate (Viagra) as a treatment for female sexual arousal disorder (FSAD) after several large studies showed inconclusive efficacy.

A major breakthrough in the field of prostate cancer research was announced last summer. For the first time in a randomized clinical trial, a drug was found to reduce the risk of prostate cancer. Widely reported headlines such as "Drug might prevent prostate cancer, researchers say" (USA Today, June 25, 2003, page 1) were tempered by reports of the drug's "disturbing" side effects.

Error rate of 5.3% is below national average compared with other majorspecialties

PSA decline of >50% observed in three-fourths of patients, partialresponse seen in 44%

A phase II study comparing the onset of action of two oral phosphodiesterase-type 5 inhibitors?TA-1790, an investigational agent and sildenafil citrate (Viagra) showed comparable results, according to VIVUS, Inc., maker of TA-1790.

A sustained-release anticholinergic drug provides appears to be beneficial in the reduction of urge incontinence for patients with either severe or moderate symptoms of overactive bladder, according to results of a study published in the February issue of The Journal of Urology (2004; 171:752-6).

Quebec City, Quebec--The good news is that most patients being treated for erectile dysfunction report that their treatment is working. The bad news is that a significant percentage of these same patients are often lost to follow-up for that very reason, according to a study by urologists from McGill University.

Minneapolis-American Medical Systems announces the launch of the AMS 700CXR Penile Prosthesis, which is designed for difficult surgical cases and re-insertion procedures.

Patients with Gleason scores =7 receiving an investigational form of immunotherapy for prostate cancer showed a significant survival advantage.

Washington--The new Medicare reform bill, which for the first time providesa prescription drug benefit for Medicare recipients, comes with a hiddencost for physicians who administer chemotherapy drugs in their offices-andperhaps their patients.

Montreal--Novel approaches to percutaneous nephrolithotomy, includinguse of a stent instead of a tube and using smaller tubes and stone "cones,"are helping to optimize this procedure. Researchers agree that improvingsafety and reducing morbidity are the goals of these new techniques.

Montreal--Using a high-powered potassium titanyl phosphate (KTP) laser to vaporize prostate tissue is proving to be safe and effective as a treatment for urinary retention in men.

Waltham, MA-Praecis Pharmaceuticals has received FDA approval to market abarelix (Plenaxis) for men with advanced prostate cancer.

Patients with nephrolithiasis frequently have metabolic abnormalities that promote calculus formation and, when identified and corrected, may attenuate stone activity.

The long-awaited results of the landmark Medical Therapy of Prostatic Symptoms (MTOPS) study have been published in The New England Journal of Medicine (2003; 349:2387-98).

A U.S. District Judge has sustained plaintiff's complaint against the manufacturers of the LHRH agonist leuprolide acetate (Lupron), for improper pricing activities.

AUA is among more than 40 medical organizations joining the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO) in a new nationwide effort to eliminate wrong-site, wrong-procedure, and wrong-patient surgeries.

The FDA has approved what is said to be the first gonadotropin releasing hormone (GnRH) antagonist for prostate cancer available as a depot formulation. Abarelix (Plenaxis) is indicated for the palliative treatment of men with advanced symptomatic prostate cancer, in whom LHRH agonist therapy is not appropriate, who refuse surgical castration, and have one or more of the following: risk of neurologic compromise due to metastases; ureteral or bladder outlet obstruction due to local encroachment or metastatic disease; or severe bone pain from skeletal metastases persisting on narcotic analgesia.

15% cut in average wholesale price would cost urologists $142 millionin 2004, AUA says

Overactive bladder patients respond favorably to botulinum injectionsin small studies

New Products & Services

In the modern era of safe and effective oral treatment of male erectile dysfunction, urologists may overlook the importance of a thorough patient evaluation.

Chicago-Although laparoscopic nephron-sparing surgery is a firmly established procedure, its full potential has not yet been reached, according to a host of studies intended to demonstrate the expanding range of the procedure's applications.

The FDA has approved tadalafil (Cialis), a new oral PDE-5 inhibitor, for the treatment of erectile dysfunction.

Athens, Greece?Early response to treatment with an investigational anticholinergic agent for overactive bladder appears to be an accurate predictor of long-term therapeutic success, according to data recently presented at the AUA New York Section meeting.

Chicago-Large-scale telephone-based management of eligible women withpresumed cystitis is associated with low clinical recurrence rates and avery low incidence of other gynecourologic diagnoses, according to a studyfrom a large California health maintenance organization.