Extraordinary Measures - In the Eyes of Mary Charity Guiya-an

Extraordinary measures is an ordinary film with ordinary characters in a story too big for it. This story is based on facts. This story is about a family with two sick children have no more than a year to live when their father determines to seek out a maverick scientist who may have a cure in Pompe disease.

        I found out that the movie extraordinary measures is exciting, enlightening, interesting and useful. It is an interesting and exciting movie because I am interested on how Mr. Crowley discover on the Internet professor at the university of Nebraska named Dr. Robert Stonstill he's working on a controversial cure for pompe disease that the medical establishment rejects and Dr. Stonstill is not interested in Pompe patient, only on the chemistry of the disease. I am interested on how these two men come together? How they come up with the treatment of the disease.

        Extraordinary measures is also enlightening and useful on the viewers especially on the parents who have children,in this movie I've learned a lot and we should apply this lessons on the reality because it is used to believed that the parent had unlimited claim on their children and rights over him. In a truer view of a matter,we are coming to see that the rights are on the side of the child and the duties on the side of the parents and one duty of a parent is to make a child to be happy,like Mr. Crowley done to his two children who has Pompe disease,He make his best or he make a way just to make Dr. Stonestill agree with his proposal to help him with the disease of his children and he also do his best just to earn such money for the cost of the medication of his children even though he knows that it is impossible to earn such money.

        I've learned that people should not just easily quit if they failed or insulted by others,They should take that as a challenge like again Mr. Crowley done to this movie that even though Dr. Stonestill do not agree with him he didn't quit easily,he did not loose hope he patiently wait for the answer of Dr. Stonestill if he agree with him.

        I also learned that we must have to accept failures, we must have to be humble because if a person is not humble there is no right path for their works and life. We people are not perfect so we make mistakes and we have to learn our mistakes and so that we can improve ourself. We should consider other peoples opinion on the idea, as they say “No man is an Island” like Dr. Stonstill hardly accept others opinion.

        If one family has a strong bonding, love,openness and faithful to God , even they are poor people if they have this three character if they have any kind of problems they can find way to solve it and overcome it without hurting anyone.

Extraordinary Measures - In the Eyes of Andrea Marie Enriquez

The movie Extraordinary Measures based from a nonfiction book The Cure, by the Pulitzer prize journalist Greeta Anand present on how a father do all his best to bucked the medical establishment in a quest to save his children is quiet impressive. It is about a parents who form a biotechnology company to develop a drug to save the lives of their children, who have a life-threatening disease called Pompe disease. In the movie, they are able to present all the needed information regarding Pompe disease including its possible signs and symptoms  to an individual, even the early onset  and the late onset of the disease are being well presented on the story. The film also included an examination of how medical research is conducted and financed means they made all the research to make this movie realistic and purely based on the scientific principle.          

When it talks about the different character of the movie, all of them were able to do or performed well on their designated role especially to Brendan Fraser  when he play as John Crowley,  a  biotechnology executive whose two youngest children were affected with Pompe Disease or acid maltase deficiency. Along with his wife Aileen (Kerri Rusell) and Harrison Ford as Dr. Robert Stonehill's. all  of them were able to portray all the necessary emotions on a particular scene that is being felt by the viewers.

When it comes to the main plot of the said movie, it is quiet inspirational and motivating, since it is based on a true story. Especially on how John Crowley together with his wife  and Dr. Robert Stonehill  passed all the obstacles to be able to push through the new drug for the treatment of Pompe disease on a very short period of time. To save the life of Megan, before she turned 9 Because at this age it is a common life span of a children suffering from Pompe disease or before it totally disables the heart and muscles of Megan. But the main point there is whatever happens as long as the person is determined to reach a particular goal even if it is impossible he/she will risk anything like what John Crowley did on the movie. He did all his best to convinced Dr. Robert Stonehill to pursue his theory in the clinical trial for the benefit of the entire Pompe disease victim. This is maybe  the main reason why the main motto of the movie is don’t hope for a miracle. Make one…especially when it talks about for treating a fatal condition.

Drug Interactions: ANALGESICS AND ANTI-INFLAMMATORY DRUGS

Drug Interactions

     

These are various reactions of a certain drug to other drugs, food, laboratory tests, and herbal products which can either be beneficial or detrimental to the patient depending on the result of the interaction.

In general, drug interactions can occur due to chemical, physiologic, or pharmacological actions. The object drug (one with desired effect) can be altered by a precipitant drug (one causing the interaction) by several mechanism. Pharmacokinetic alterations can be brought up by any alteration in gastric pH, complexation and adsorption of object drug, delayed or rapid rate of gastric emptying, malabsorption, displacement from protein binding sites, induction or inhibition of biotransformation, and alteration of excretion. Pharmacodynamic interactions can occur from antagonism, potentiation/addition/synergistic effects, alteration of electrolytes, interactions at receptor sites, alteration of gastrointestinal flora, and different drug combinations.

Overview of Analgesics and NSAIDs' Mechanism of Action

Analgesia, or loss of sensitization to pain, can be achieved using drug groups such as opioids, acetaminophen, steroids, and non-steroidal anfi-inflammatory agents. Other drugs such as local and general anesthetics can also give the same effect although their use is more on the loss of sensitization to stimuli rather than pain alone.

Steroids, acetaminophen and NSAIDs are more directed to the inhibition of prostaglandin production. Prostaglandins are endogenous substances which are considered to be a chemical mediator for pain and inflammation. These substances are derived as end products from the metabolic pathway of arachidonic acid (ARA). Free ARA, the one undergoes biotransformation,  is cleaved out from the phosphobilipid layer of the cell membrane by the enzyme phospholipase A2. The free ARA will be enacted by cyclooxygenase (COX) enzyme and/or lipooxygenase enzyme, however the latter is not directly relevant to pain and inflammation. The cycooxygenase enzyme will act on the arachidonic acid to form prostaglandins which as discussed earlier will contribute to the pain sensation. Steroids, such as prednisone, will act on the phospholipase A2 enzyme which will limit the amount of free ARA to be converted to prostaglandins. NSAIDs can inhibit either COX1 or COX 2 or both to prevent the formation of prostaglandins. Acetamiinophen is a weak inhibitor of COX1 and COX in the periphery due to the presence of peroxidases in inflammatory sites but pose its inhibition on COX3 found in the central nervous system in which the analgesic effect is directed to the brain pain centers.

A more powerful group of analgesics are called collectively as opioids. With morphine as the prototype, they will act not on the ARA-COX-prostaglandin pathway but mimics the action of endorphins and they bind to opioid receptors. Such receptors are called mu, kappa, delta, and iota receptors. When opioid drugs will bind to these receptors especially to mu receptors, this will result to depression of certain brain functions that will lead to analgesia.

Morphine is a drug that is used for patients who are terminally ill and requires analgesia for hospice treatment. NSAIDs like aspirin, ibuprofen, and mefenamic acids are over the counter drugs that may be used by anyone even without medical advice. Acetaminophen is the most commonly used drug for fever due to safety profile.

List of Drug-Drug Interactions for Analgesics and NSAIDs
List of Drug-Food Interactions for Analgesics and NSAIDs
List of Drug-Laboratory Interactions for Analgesics and NSAIDs

References:


Brunton, L. et.al. (2006). Goodman and gilman's the pharmacologic basis of therapeutics. New York: McGraw Hill. 11th Ed.
Hacker, M. et.al. (2009). Pharmacology principles and practice. San Diego, CA: Elsevier
Katzung, B. (2007). Basic and clinical pharmacology. New York: McGraw Hill. 10th Ed.
Rybacki, J. (2004). Essential guide to prescription drugs. New York: Harper Collins