Many older adults get too much levothyroxine (Synthroid, etc)

July 2011

Many older adults get too much levothyroxine (Synthroid, etc)...increasing their risk of atrial fibrillation and fractures.

Levothyroxine requirements decrease as people age...but doses are often not reduced accordingly.

Younger adults need about 1.7 mcg/kg/day of levothyroxine...but some seniors need only 0.5 mcg/kg/day.

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Table of Contents

Dyslipidemia Lots of patients are asking if they should stop taking niacin (Niaspan, etc) for dyslipidemia
Diabetes confusing the news about Avandia and Actos
Diabetes how to manage diabetes during fasting
Antidepressants Viibryd (VI-brid) marketed as a new "dual-acting" serotonergic antidepressant
Antidepressants Is it okay to combine an SSRI (fluoxetine, etc) with an SNRI (Effexor, Cymbalta, or Savella)
Respiratory & Allergy Singulair is "as good as" inhaled corticosteroids or long-acting beta-agonists for asthma
Respiratory & Allergy Daliresp (DA-li-resp), a new oral tablet for severe COPD in patients with chronic bronchitis
Diarrhea the new oral drug Dificid (fidaxomicin) for Clostridium difficile diarrhea
Restless Legs Horizant for restless legs syndrome
Thyroid Disorders Many older adults get too much levothyroxine (Synthroid, etc)
Infectious Diseases We're running out of antibiotics for multidrug-resistant gram-negative "superbugs"
Statins stronger dosing limits for simvastatin
Hepatitis C two new protease inhibitors for hepatitis C, Victrelis (vic-TREL-is) and Incivek (in-SEE-veck)