Pain is something everyone experiences. This episode of The Anthill podcast explores how and why it works in our brains, what kinds of drugs are being developed to reduce pain, and whether or not robots of the future should be built so that they experience pain.
Methylprednisolone, the corticosteroid that’s used to treat serious asthma attacks, works by reducing inflammation.
from www.shutterstock.com
A trial of methylprednisolone in kidney patients was halted recently because of safety concerns. But this doesn’t affect people taking the drug for asthma, arthritis or other inflammatory conditions.
A pharmacist prepares to grind up a potion from unidentified pills the old-fashioned way.
AP Photo/Ruben Goldberg
Amazon currently sells pretty much everything, including the kitchen sink, but medications are very different from books and fidget spinners.
Feeling tired or being unable to concentrate is common even days after surgery. But there are simple ways to help speed up your recovery.
Jason Jones/Flickr
Some people can feel drowsy or can’t concentrate days after an operation. While it’s easy to blame the anaesthetics, the real picture is usually more complicated.
People with cystic fibrosis, Australia’s most common inherited condition, have thick mucus, including on the lungs.
from www.shutterstock.com
Have you ever wondered how the small white ibuprofen pill turns off your headache? Or how a regular antidepressant keeps your brain chemistry in balance?
In the development of new drugs, taking something from nature and modifying it has been a successful tactic employed by medicinal chemists for years. Now, with the help of nanotechnology, researchers are…
It’s going to be a night to remember … or maybe not.
Sterneck
Mephedrone (4-methylmethcathinone) is a fairly new “party” drug that has exploded in popularity over the last few years. On the street, it has a variety of names: Drone, M-Cat, Bubbles, Meow. It’s also…
It’s obvious: better referee performance is better for players and better for spectators. Right?
AAP Image/Joe Castro
Late last week football (soccer) website football365.com reported that FIFA, the international governing body for the world game, is considering forcing referees to pass fitness tests prior to games. This…
Despite some alarming findings, recreational mephedrone use appears to be on the rise.
Robert Conrad Photography
Human use of cathinones for their psychoactive properties traces back to prehistory. Known as “khat” by the people of eastern Africa, the leaves and twigs of the Catha edulis shrub have been chewed for…
It’s late in the night. And after a long day at work, you have a splitting headache. You rattle around in the bottom drawer of the bathroom vanity to find a packet of paracetamol tablets you know are hiding…
Imagine for a moment that you could gain everyone’s trust in an instant – you could sell more, love more and accomplish more than you ever imagined. Or so says the online marketing spiel for the drug oxytocin…
They may have the same active ingredient, but fillers, colours and lubricants may vary.
Flickr/Harsh Vardhan
“Would you like the generic brand of that medicine?” It’s a question you’ve probably been asked, or at least heard, when picking up a prescription at your local pharmacy. It’s likely you were told the…
