November 2019 - Med Ed 101

Carbamazepine Interactions – What to do About Them?

Date November 20, 2019 Author By Eric Christianson Category Drug Interactions, Seizures

I’m working on a new book that I’m super excited about! I’m writing a book on drug interactions and hope to finish by the end of the year! I’m tackling the top 200 drugs plus those I consider very clinically relevant in practice. My hope is that it is a perfect resource for ambulatory care, […]

Insomnia Polypharmacy

Date November 17, 2019 Author By Eric Christianson Category Polypharmacy

Insomnia is a sneaky condition that can lead to polypharmacy. Many of the medications used in the management of insomnia can work for a short period of time, but I’ve seen so many cases where the effects wear off over time. Always remember to do our due diligence on non-pharmacologic interventions! Here’s a case scenario […]

2020 Pharmacist Job Market Outlook

Date November 13, 2019 Author By Eric Christianson Category career

I’m saddened for some of my friends and colleagues who’ve recently lost their job. The recent move by HealthPartners in my own state hits close to home. HealthPartners is closing up 30 retail pharmacies and this means further tightening of the saturated job market. If you are looking at the traditional pharmacy workforce, the 2020 […]

OCT Inhibition and How It Affects Metformin

Date November 10, 2019 Author By Eric Christianson Category Diabetes

Metformin is the go-to first-line medication in type 2 diabetes. While drug interactions aren’t incredibly common with its use, we should be aware of OCT inhibition and the potential effects that this might cause. Under normal circumstances, this isn’t necessarily a drug interaction that will be life-threatening, but one that could have some mild to […]

Verapamil Phenytoin Interaction – Management Pearls

Date November 6, 2019 Author By Eric Christianson Category Drug Interactions

In the case scenario below, I discuss the implications of the verapamil phenytoin interaction. JS is a 38-year-old male who has been on phenytoin for seizure prophylaxis for several years. He reports to his primary care provider complaining of severe headaches. He is diagnosed with cluster headaches. Over the next year, he continues to have […]