News Briefs

A total of 4,178 community pharmacies opened in the U.S. between 2022 and 2024. The problem is, 7,240 closed. 

A new analysis from the Journal of the American Pharmacists Association found that net loss of 3,062 was made up primarily of chain pharmacies (2,680) rather than independent stores (382). 

“Pharmacy openings and closures reflect the evolving landscape of pharmacy access and build upon current understanding of the complex issues which threaten the sustainability of community pharmacy access in the United States,” the analysis concluded. 

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced this week is going to require a warning on glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists labels about a rare condition. 

Specifically the regulator is informing patients and healthcare professionals of an increased risk of non-arteritic anterior ischemic optic neuropathy (NAION). This rare problem can result in acute, painless, decreased vision in one eye and can include permanent vision loss. 

“The agency is requiring application holders for all GLP-1 RA medications to add information to the Warnings and Precautions section of labeling about the potential increased risk of NAION associated with use of these medications,” reads a statement on the FDA’s website.

The FDA conducted an meta-analysis for more than 100 “clinical trials across GLP-1 RA development programs because of the small number or absence of cases of NAION observed in individual trials.”

While the number of NAION events remains small, “Overall, the results showed a NAION incidence rate of 6.4 events per 100,000 PY in patients treated with GLP-1 RAs compared to 3.8 events per 100,000 PY in comparator-treated patients,” the FDA wrote. 

Read more about the regulator’s analysis of the issue here. 

Don't buy or use these products. A simple message from Health Canada about unauthorized injectable peptide and non-peptide drugs.

"Health Canada is warning consumers not to use or inject unauthorized peptides after lab testing found bacteria in products sold online," the department said in a warning released late last week. "Injecting contaminated products can cause serious infections, hospitalization, and in severe cases, life-threatening sepsis. The risk of infection is higher in people with a compromised immune system."

Get more info on the Canadian online retailers where you patients could be sourcing these problematic peptides and the bacteria found in the drugs themselves here.