The Essential Guide to Prescription Drugs 2005: Everything You Need To Know For Safe Drug Use

The Essential Guide to Prescription Drugs has been used for more than twenty-five years by informed consumers interested in obtaining full information about the medicines they take. Revised annually to help readers stay abreast of continual innovations in drug therapy, each edition continues to provide the detailed profiles of prescription drug information that families have come to expect and rely on. Each drug profile offers a great depth of information, which includes crucial facts about medical conditions and drug combinations that often require dosing adjustments. For example, if you or a family member suffer a liver or kidney ailment you'll learn how medication dose or frequency may need to be modified to help avoid dangerous and unnecessary toxic drug reactions.

Each of the more than 300 drug profiles opens with an easy-to-read informational box outlining the benefits and risks of the drug, followed by information on available dosage forms and strengths, examples of what the drug treats when used alone or as part of a combination product, the advisability of use during pregnancy or when nursing, adverse effects and common side effects, and much more.

Ongoing research helps expand and shape our understanding of how diseases happen and often leads to the development of revolutionary new medicines. In "The Leading Edge," Dr. Rybacki makes readers aware of promising new medications awaiting FDA approval, and in "True Breakthroughs," he describes novel drugs recently approved by the FDA and also details previously undiscovered new uses for older medicines. A unique feature called "Typical Treatment Goals and Measurements" explains what your doctor is usually trying to accomplish with medicines to help you and your family stay at the center of care.

While no book can be substituted for the professional judgment of a doctor, The Essential Guide to Prescription Drugs does offer the information you need to take today's complex and potent drugs intelligently, safely, and effectively.