Whelehans Health Blog

Get the flu vaccine...not the flu! Part 1 Eamonn Brady is a pharmacist and the owner of Whelehans Pharmacies, Pearse St and Clonmore, Mullingar. If you have any health questions e-mail them to info@whelehans.ie   Influenza (flu) is a highly infectious acute respiratory illness caused by the influenza virus. It can affect people of any age. You can get the flu vaccination your GP surgery or local pharmacy. The flu vaccine is free if over 65, children under 18, people with long-term illness, pregnant women, and health care workers. You can get your flu vaccine at Whelehans Pearse St and...

Do you suffer with circulation problems? Did you know? We have 100,000 miles of blood vessels in a complex network throughout our body. Vascular Disease includes any condition that affects your circulatory system including diseases of arteries, veins, and lymph vessels as well as blood disorders that affect circulation. These include: Peripheral Artery Disease Renal Artery Disease Varicose Veins Venous Blood Clots Aneurysm Raynaud’s Disease Peripheral Venous Disease Erectile Dysfunction   Symptoms of these conditions vary from “cold hands”, pins and needles in hands and feet, numbness, varicose veins, leg cramps, a heavy feeling in the limbs, and swollen ankles...

Biologics for severe Asthma New Asthma Treatment Part 3   European Academy of Allergy and Clinical Immunology (EAACI) guidelines (continued)   Dupilumab It is approved for severe asthma with type 2 inflammation characterized by raised blood eosinophils and/or raised fractional exhaled nitric oxide (FeNO); it is approved as add on therapy for adults and adolescents aged 12 to 17 years. Dupilumab blocks two interleukin proteins called (IL-4 and IL-13) which differentiates it from the other biologic therapies; it has shown very favourable results in asthma trials. The EAACI strongly recommends it as add-on therapy to reduce symptom exacerbation and improve...

Biologics for severe Asthma New Asthma treatment Part 2           How long should biologics be used There are currently no set guidelines on how long a biologic should be used for severe asthma.  Guidelines recommend trialling a biologic for a minimum four months to determine if it improves severe asthma symptoms. Consultants are given specific guidelines of how often to review and will decide if the biologic is to continue based on response. European guidelines on biologic use Treatment guidelines were produced by the European Academy of Allergy and Clinical Immunology (EAACI)   EAACI Biologic Therapies...

Biologics for severe Asthma New Asthma Treatment Part 1   Biologics are a new class of drugs called monoclonal antibodies licenced for severe asthma. They reduce the inflammation in the respiratory tract. Only respiratory specialists can prescribe biologics.   Most biologics are given by subcutaneous injection once or twice a month. All biologics are an add-on option and do not replace existing reliever and preventer medication, but patients should eventually be able to reduce the dosage of existing therapies such as inhaled corticosteroids. Biologics are available to target the two subtypes of Type-2 Severe Asthma (i.e.) allergic (IgE-mediated) asthma and...