Tag J.K. Aronson MA DPhil MBChB FRCP HonFBPhS HonFFPM

Poliomyelitis vaccine

General information There are two types of poliomyelitis vaccines available. One is prepared from polioviruses that as a rule have been inactivated by formaldehyde. Inactivated poliomyelitis vaccine (IPV) is given parenterally. The second group of polio vaccines comprises attenuated strains…

Podophyllum derivatives

See also Topoisomerase inhibitors General information Podophyllum is a powerful skin irritant and antimitotic agent, widely used in the topical treatment of condylomata acuminata. Etoposide and teniposide are semisynthetic derivatives of podophyllin, which was originally isolated from the root of…

Pneumococcal vaccine

See also Vaccines General information Two types of pneumococcal vaccine are available, polysaccharide vaccine and conjugated polysaccharide vaccine. Pneumococcal vaccine is composed of a saline solution containing the purified capsular polysaccharides of 23 types of Streptococcus pneumoniae . The improved…

Pleconaril

General information Pleconaril is an antiviral drug, effective against picornaviruses, including non-polio enteroviruses [ ] and rhinoviruses [ ]. In 2002 the US FDA refused to license pleconaril because of adverse reactions, of which the most commonly reported were mild…

Platinum-containing cytostatic drugs

See also Cytotoxic and immunosuppressant drugs General information Although the main platinum-containing cytotoxic drugs, cisplatin, carboplatin, and oxaliplatin, share some structural similarities, there are marked differences between them in therapeutic uses, pharmacokinetics, and adverse effects profiles [ ]. Compared with…