Dtsch Arztebl Int
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Amantadine, oseltamivir, and zanamivir are currently available in Germany for the prevention and treatment of influenza. We review their efficacy and side-effect profiles. ⋯ The benefits of antiviral drugs, particularly neuraminidase inhibitors, outweigh their risks. In deciding whether to use them, physicians should consider the properties of the currently circulating viruses and the patient's individual risk constellation, as directed in clinical treatment recommendations.
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Conflicting information about the proper treatment of head lice has given rise to uncertainty among patients and treating personnel. For example, the reported efficacy of permethrin fell from 97% in the 1990s to 30% in 2010. ⋯ Outbreaks of head lice can be successfully terminated by synchronous treatment with ovicidal dimethicones.
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All over the world, refractive errors are among the most frequently occuring treatable distur - bances of visual function. Ametropias have a prevalence of nearly 70% among adults in Germany and are thus of great epidemiologic and socio-economic relevance. ⋯ Simple functional tests can be used in everyday clinical practice to determine quickly, easily, and safely whether the patient is suffering from a benign and easily correctable type of visual impairment, or whether there are other, more serious underlying causes.
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Now that the consumption of natural and synthetic cannabinoids is becoming more widespread, the specific treatment of cannabis-related disturbances is an increasingly important matter. There are many therapeutic options, and it is not always clear which ones are evidence-based and appropriate for use in a given clinical situation. ⋯ Psychotherapeutic techniques remain the foundation of treatment for cannabis dependence. No drug has yet been approved for the treatment of cannabis dependence because of the lack of scientific evidence. The rates of abstinence that are currently achieved, even with psychotherapy, are still only moderate. Further clinical studies are needed for the evaluation of combinations of various treatments that can meet the needs of individual patients.
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Chronic neuropathic pain, including painful peripheral polyneuropathy and post-herpetic neuralgia, affects 6.9-10% of the general population. ⋯ Drugs are now chosen to treat neuropathic pain independently of the cause and symptoms of the pain. Topical agents are used only to treat peripheral neuropathy. The utility of a treatment approach based on the patient's symptoms and pathological mechanisms was recently demonstrated for the first time in a randomized trial. The goal of current research is to facilitate treatment planning on the basis of the clinical phenotype.