News & Updates

Nirmatrelvir reduces the risk of long COVID

Post-COVID condition, also known as long COVID, is a serious public health problem affecting millions of people around the world.¹

Nicorette® QuickMist Launch Symposium

During the launch of Nicorette^® QuickMist at the Kuala Lumpur Nicotine Addiction International Conference (KLNAC) 2023, a panel of distinguished experts led the discussion on the role of Nicotine Replacement Therapy (NRT) on smoking cessation management. The panel comprised of notable experts, including Professor Chris Bullen (New Zealand), Associate Professor Dr Amer Siddiq bin Amer Nordin (Malaysia), Dr Philip Tønnesen (Denmark) and Professor Philip Eng (Singapore).

The future of COVID-19 management: A spotlight on respirology

At the 27th Congress of the Asian Pacific Society of Respirology (APSR) 2023, a Pfizer-sponsored symposium addressed the evolving challenges of COVID-19, particularly for patients with pre-existing respiratory conditions. Chaired by Dr Chan Kwok Wai Adrian, a renowned respiratory physician and intensivist from Mount Elizabeth Novena Hospital, Singapore, and featuring insights from Professor Yang Kuang-Yao of National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University, Taipei, Taiwan, the symposium focused on the disease’s impact, treatment guidelines, regional management strategies, and the role of nirmatrelvir/ritonavir, a new oral combination pill, in the treatment of COVID-19.

The role of oral antivirals in COVID-19 treatment: Who, when, and how?

Though most countries have eased pandemic restrictions, there is no room for complacency in managing COVID-19, which continues to cause significant morbidity and mortality.

At a recent symposium, esteemed experts Dr Roger Paredes, Head of Department of Infectious Diseases at the Hospital Universitari Germans Trias i Pujol, Badalona, Catalonia, Spain, and Dr Nicola Petrosillo, Head of the Infection Prevention and Control and Infectious Disease Service at University Hospital Campus Bio-Medico, Rome, Italy, gave global perspectives on the continuing unmet needs in the COVID-19 outpatient landscape and discussed the role of antiviral treatment options in patients at risk of progressing to severe COVID-19. Dr Petrick Periyasamy, Head of Infectious Diseases Unit, Medical Department, UKM Medical Centre, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, chaired the session.

Timely treatment of patients at risk for severe COVID-19 prevents severe outcomes

Despite widespread uptake of vaccinations, COVID-19 remains a serious health issue for high-risk patients, owing to the emergence of new variants of concern (VOCs), waning immunity, and breakthrough infections.

At a recent symposium in Singapore, esteemed experts Dr Asok Kurup, Consultant Infectious Diseases Physician at Mount Elizabeth Medical Centre, Singapore, and Dr Alex Soriano, Head of Infectious Diseases Department, Hospital Clínic of Barcelona and Assistant Professor, University of Barcelona, Spain, gave insights on the evolution of global trends since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic and discussed key challenges in managing high-risk patients with COVID-19 in the ICU. They also highlighted early treatment strategies to minimize the burden of COVID-19 on healthcare systems.

Dapagliflozin DELIVERs across full HF spectrum regardless of LVEF

The selective, oral sodium–glucose cotransporter 2 (SGLT2) inhibitor dapagliflozin reduces the risk of cardiovascular (CV) death or worsening heart failure (HF) in patients with HF and mildly reduced or preserved ejection fraction (HFmrEF or HFpEF) in the phase III DELIVER* trial, touted as the largest and most inclusive thus far in this patient group.

NOACs in nonvalvular atrial fibrillation with multimorbidity: Where does apixaban stand?

Atrial fibrillation (AF) is the most common cardiac arrhythmia encountered in clinical practice, affecting millions of people globally. Stroke is one of its devastating complications, with the risk steeply increasing with advancing age. Additionally, AF is associated with more than a tripling of the risk of systemic embolic (SE) events. [J Am Heart Assoc 2020;9:e016724]

Rapid antigen test: Don’t let perfect be the enemy of good

While rapid antigen test is less sensitive than conventional nucleic acid amplification test (NAAT) such as RT-PCR* in detecting SARS-CoV-2 virus, “a test does not have to be perfect to be clinically useful,” said Professor Angela Caliendo during a session in IDWeek 2021 — echoing the maxim that perfect should not be the enemy of good in the pandemic era.