The ecology and bioactivity of some Greco-Roman medicinal minerals: the case of Melos earth pigments.

Mineral compounds, as pigments and therapeutics, appeared regularly in the technical and medical texts of the Greco-Roman (G-R) world. We have referred to them as 'G-R medicinal minerals' and we suggest that despite their seeming familiarity, there are actually many unknowns regarding their precise nature and/or purported pharmacological attributes. Earth pigments are part of that group.

Common cold and influenza symptom management: the use of pharmacokinetic considerations to predict the efficacy of a twice-daily treatment for colds and flu.

Objective: The objective of the two pharmacokinetic studies reported here was to compare the relative bioavailability of an ibuprofen/pseudoephedrine modified-release capsule with each of the active ingredients given alone as standard formulations.

Study Design: Evaluation of two open, randomised, cross-over studies, one single dose and one multiple dose, in healthy male volunteers.

Methods: Healthy volunteers were randomised in a cross-over design to single or multiple doses of a combination of ibuprofen (600 mg) plus pseudoephedrine (90 mg) in a slow-release formulation and the individual active products alone as standard formulations; ibuprofen 400 mg, pseudoephedrine 60 mg.

An investigation into the comparative efficacy of soluble aspirin and solid paracetamol in postoperative pain after third molar surgery.

Objective: To compare the efficacy of soluble aspirin 900 mg and paracetamol 1,000 mg in patients with postoperative pain after third molar surgery.

Design: A randomised, placebo controlled, double-blind study.

Setting: Day stay units of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery at Cardiff Dental Hospital and Hexham General Hospital, Northumberland.

Use of aspirin in cardiovascular prophylaxis.

The value of prophylatic low-dose aspirin in patients who have experienced a myocardial infarction (MI), stroke or transient ischaemic attack (TIA) has been established beyond all reasonable doubt in a number of major overviews of randomised controlled trials. The value of aspirin in so-called 'primary prevention' is debated, but discussions are based on a misunderstanding. The terms 'primary' and 'secondary' relate to past vascular events and the occurrence of a prior event is only one factor in the estimation of the risk of a future event.