Vancomycin use is often associated with nephrotoxicity. It remains uncertain, however, to what extent vancomycin is directly responsible, as numerous potential risk factors for acute kidney injury frequently coexist. Herein, we critically examine available data in adult patients pertinent to this question. We review the pharmacokinetics/pharmacodynamics of vancomycin metabolism. Efficacy and safety data are discussed. The pathophysiology of vancomycin nephrotoxicity is considered. Risk factors for nephrotoxicity are enumerated, including the potential synergistic nephrotoxicity of vancomycin and piperacillin‐tazobactam. Suggestions for clinical practice and future research are given.

The STOP-BANG questionnaire is useful for preoperative identification of patients at higher than normal risk for surgical complications, probably because it identifies patients with occult OSAS.

Acid peptic disorders are the result of distinctive, but overlapping pathogenic mechanisms leading to either excessive acid secretion or diminished mucosal defense. They are common entities present in daily clinical practice that, owing to their chronicity, represent a significant cost to healthcare. Key elements in the success of controlling these entities have been the development of potent and safe drugs based on physiological targets. The histamine-2 receptor antagonists revolutionized the treatment of acid peptic disorders owing to their safety and efficacy profile. The proton-pump inhibitors (PPIs) represent a further therapeutic advance due to more potent inhibition of acid secretion. Ample data from clinical trials and observational experience have confirmed the utility of these agents in the treatment of acid peptic diseases, with differential efficacy and safety characteristics between and within drug classes. Paradigms in their speed and duration of action have underscored the need for new chemical entities that, from a single dose, would provide reliable duration of acid control, particularly at night. Moreover, PPIs reduce, but do not eliminate, the risk of ulcers in patients taking NSAIDs, reflecting untargeted physiopathologic pathways and a breach in the ability to sustain an intragastric pH of more than 4. This review provides an assessment of the current understanding of the physiology of acid production, a discussion of medications targeting gastric acid production and a review of efficacy in specific acid peptic diseases, as well as current challenges and future directions in the treatment of acid-mediated diseases.

Letermovir (AIC246, MK‐8228) is a human cytomegalovirus terminase inhibitor indicated for the prophylaxis of cytomegalovirus infection and disease in allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplant recipients that is also being investigated for use in other transplant settings. Many transplant patients receive immunosuppressant drugs, of which several have narrow therapeutic ranges. There is a potential for the coadministration of letermovir with these agents, and any potential effect on their pharmacokinetics (PK) must be understood. Five phase 1 trials were conducted in 73 healthy female participants to evaluate the effect of letermovir on the PK of cyclosporine, tacrolimus, sirolimus, and mycophenolic acid (active metabolite of mycophenolate mofetil [MMF]), as well as the effect of cyclosporine and MMF on letermovir PK. Safety and tolerability were also assessed. Coadministration of letermovir with cyclosporine, tacrolimus, and sirolimus resulted in 1.7‐, 2.4‐, and 3.4‐fold increases in area under the plasma concentration–time curve and 1.1‐, 1.6‐, and 2.8‐fold increases in maximum plasma concentration, respectively, of the immunosuppressants. Coadministration of letermovir and MMF had no meaningful effect on the PK of mycophenolic acid. Coadministration with cyclosporine increased letermovir area under the plasma concentration–time curve by 2.1‐fold and maximum plasma concentration by 1.5‐fold, while coadministration with MMF did not meaningfully affect the PK of letermovir. Given the increased exposures of cyclosporine, tacrolimus, and sirolimus, frequent monitoring of concentrations should be performed during administration and at discontinuation of letermovir, with dose adjustment as needed. These data support the reduction in clinical dosage of letermovir (to 240 mg) upon coadministration with cyclosporine.

Objective-In utero exposure to drugs of abuse can lead to the Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome (NAS), a condition that is associated with prolonged hospitalization. Buprenorphine is a partial mu opioid agonist used for treatment of adult detoxification and maintenance, but has never been administered to neonates with opioid abstinence. The primary objective of this study was to demonstrate the feasibility and to the extent possible in this sized study, the safety of sublingual buprenorphine in the treatment of NAS. Secondary goals were to evaluate efficacy relative to standard therapy and to characterize buprenorphine pharmacokinetics when sublingually administered.Methods-We conducted a randomized, open-label, active control study of sublingual buprenorphine for the treatment of opiate withdrawal. Thirteen term infants were allocated to sublingual buprenorphine 13.2-39 mcg/kg/day administered in three divided doses and thirteen to standard of care oral neonatal opium solution (NOS). Dose decisions were made using a modified Finnegan scoring system. Results-Sublingual buprenorphine was largely effective in controlling NAS. Greater than 98% of plasma concentrations ranged from undetectable to approximately 0.60 ng/ml, which is less than needed to control abstinence symptoms in adults. The ratio of buprenorphine to norbuprenorphine was larger than that seen in adults, suggesting a relative impairment of N-dealkylation. Three infants receiving buprenorphine and one infant receiving standard of care reached protocol-specified maximum doses and required adjuvant therapy with phenobarbital. The mean length of treatment for the NOS group was 32 compared to 22 days for the buprenorphine group. The mean length of stay for the NOS group was 38 days compared to 27 days for the buprenorphine group. Treatment with buprenorphine was well tolerated.Conclusions-Buprenorphine administered via the sublingual route is feasible and apparently safe, and may represent a novel treatment for NAS.