Introducing Health Pages

Hi,

We're happy to introduce our newest feature - Health Pages. Health Pages are public documents on health topics created in collaboration by MedHelp users. So much more than a dictionary, they can be a compilation of FAQs, a listing of relevant articles and news, a summary of recent research, or any other information that members of the community might find useful.

Health Pages were designed to be a collaborative effort to share information, so any user in the community can contribute by editing a Health Page.

The very first Hepatitis Health Page, a list of common Hepatitis C acronyms is now live as an example at:
http://www.medhelp.org/health_pages/Hepatitis/Common-Hepatits-C-Acronyms/show/3?cid=64 You can edit this to add your own acronyms and also create your own Health Pages. To view all Health Pages, simply click on the "Health Pages" link at the top right of the community. Also, new pages will appear in the recent activity box to the right.

This is a brand new feature that we're very excited about here, so please let us know what you think. Your feedback will be critical in helping future updates and enhancements.

MedHelp

Note: Although we encourage you to share information, we ask that you respect the copyright of others. Please refrain from uploading any content that is copyrighted or trademarked.

[CockSparrow]

Dont know if its just me but when I click the link it doesnt work
CS

[anwaar]

It is not just you, it is me too - maybe we're 'special' ;)

[geterdone]

I like it! another winner! We have some very talented and knowledgeable posters here and this Health Page will be a great asset to the forum as a whole.

jasper

[Myown]

So, in otherwords the suggestion that I made the other day(didn't send the suggestion in just mentioned it in a thread) about it being too bad that we didn't have a permanent page that visitors or newcomers can see so they could read things like the discussion/debate that took place between 2 of our members concerning "Tx now," or "Wait and Watch mode." So now discussions like that would or could be a topic in the Health Pages?,,,

[Myown]

or any other information that members of the community might find useful.
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That is what I base my above post on - sort of like a technicality:)

[CockSparrow]

Looks like my list in alphabetical order. Feel kinda honored.
I probably should add the bits they left out such ALT etc.

We probably should do a list of definitions as well. You no Acute/Chonic what the stupid names of the side effects mean. What the hell is myalgia. Why cant they just say "muscle pain".
CS

[CockSparrow]

Editing is really easy to mess up.
Can you change the font size of the acronyms I have added. I cant

Things could get messy if the editing process stays a buggy as it is.
CS

[Med Help]

Hi,

Just made the edits and thanks for the great addition to the list (and yes, I believe the original was from your post). We're going to work on the editing to make it even easier, this is v1 of this. We're extremely excited about it and wanted to get it out there as soon as possible.

Please keep the feedback coming.

MedHelp

[eureka254]

Thank you so much -- it's a great idea! As a newbie, I was making guesses and following threads trying to find out what most of those acronyms meant.  Definitely an "enhancement."

[CockSparrow]

Thanks it is an excellent idea.
I Still dont like the white sides though.
CS

[Wassup]

I would have taken credit for the suggestion myself, but this link came out so soon after I wrote MH re: acronym list, it must have been in the works prior to my sugg.. This place just keeps getting better and better.  Next thing ya know there'll be a 'no sx' pill that is taken once, and SVL will be attained, w/ no relapsers.  If ya aim for the stars, you're not as likely to shoot yer foot off.  Hugs, Ant B

[Mikkimoe]

Hi - I was thinking this article may be a nice reference. Also how do you address the message to link to Med Help (like you did cocksparrow)

Hepatitis C Research & Treatment News
The latest research & treatment news about Hepatitis C infection, diagnosis, symptoms and treatments.
February 12, 2008
Will STAT-C Replace Today's HCV Standard Therapy?
Experts in the field agree that STAT-C drugs combined with pegylated interferon and possibly ribavirin are the future for treating Hepatitis C. Learn more about STAT-C, as well as the three factors limiting interferon treatment.

by Nicole Cutler, L.Ac.

A new era of medical technology is currently emerging for Hepatitis C treatment. The development of specifically targeted antiviral therapy for Hepatitis C (STAT-C) is rapidly advancing and will revolutionize the way this virus is treated.

Today’s standard treatments are based on interferon, a medication that works by modifying the immune system response. However, by targeting the Hepatitis C virus, STAT-C uses a more direct approach than interferon-based therapies.

Although several therapeutic regimens have been developed to treat Hepatitis C, they all focus on interferon. The current standard of care for the treatment of Hepatitis C is combination therapy with pegylated interferon-alfa and ribavirin. While this combination regimen boasts an 80 percent success rate for those infected with Hepatitis C genotype 2, only about 40 percent undertaking this therapy achieve success with genotype 1, the most common Hepatitis C subtype in North America. Hepatitis C treatment programs centered on interferon are limited by three primary factors:

1. Side Effects – Enduring interferon treatment is a challenge; approximately 50 percent of patients are forced to reduce the dosage or stop treatment prematurely due to the severity of side effects.

2. Efficacy – Interferon’s effectiveness is limited; of those who are able to complete treatment at full dosage, approximately only 50 percent achieve sustained virologic response (SVR), otherwise known as an undetectable viral load.

3. Duration – The amount of time in treatment is long; duration times typically range from six months to one year.

Concerns about the efficacy and tolerability of standard peginterferon/ribavirin therapy suggest there is a significant medical need for improved therapies for Hepatitis C. As supported thus far by clinical trial results, the hope for STAT-C is to improve on the three factors limiting interferon treatment: improvement in viral elimination, higher patient tolerability and shorter treatment duration.

Instead of stimulating the body’s natural immune response to the virus, STAT-C directly attacks the Hepatitis C virus. Similar to some of the drugs used to treat HIV, these new medications thwart the enzymes needed for the virus to reproduce.

Resistance
Drug resistance is one of the larger obstacles STAT-C must contend with. Similar to HIV therapy, the antiviral agents composing STAT-C possibilities are limited by being prone to drug resistance. When the virus alters itself to avoid extinction, drug resistance renders the drug useless and makes the new strain even harder to eliminate. However, researchers have found that Hepatitis C resistance may be delayed or prevented by using combinations of potent antiviral drugs without cross-resistance profiles and optimizing patient adherence to therapy.

The Contenders
In terms of possible new anti-virals in the pipeline, the medications thus far are targeting two enzymes required for Hepatitis C reproduction: serine protease and polymerase. Known as Hepatitis C protease and polymerase inhibitors, the early clinical data on this class of drugs is encouraging despite issues of toxicity and virus resistance. Inhibiting these two enzymes has emerged as preferred contenders in the realization of STAT-C.

· Protease Inhibitors – Examples of protease inhibitors currently being developed and tested include SCH503034, VX-950 (Telaprevir), VX500, R7227, ITMN-191, ACH-1095 and TMC435350. While a few of these have been abandoned or altered due to their potential toxicity, the clinical promise of protease inhibitors is enormous. Especially when combined with pegylated interferon alfa-2a and ribavirin, most studies recruiting this triple combination demonstrate superiority in rapid Hepatitis C viral load decline.

· Polymerase Inhibitors – Examples of polymerase inhibitors currently being developed and tested include GS9190, GSK625433, R7128, R1626, VCH-759, MK-0608, IDX-184, A-837093, and AG-021541. While some reports on these agents to date have revealed drug resistance and gastrointestinal side effects, the bottom line is polymerase inhibitors have the potential to dramatically drop viral load in a short period of time. As their evaluation continues, an increasing number of researchers are combining polymerase inhibitors with pegylated interferon alfa-2a for greater efficacy.

It is important to remember that many investigational agents never make it out of the development pipeline, either due to suboptimal efficacy or poor safety. However, incorporating the approaches of enzyme inhibition with immune therapy may provide a cure for a substantial percentage of people with Hepatitis C. Experts in the field agree that STAT-C drugs combined with pegylated interferon and possibly ribavirin are the future for treating Hepatitis C.

We can expect that therapy for Hepatitis C will become more complicated, similar to highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) used to fight HIV infection. Also like HAART, physicians and researchers must be cautious working with STAT-C, as the virus may become more sophisticated and resist the medications used. Although STAT-C is not a single-pill cure-all, its ability to reduce viral load in a relatively short period of time will revolutionize how Hepatitis C is treated.


References:

http://hcvdrugs.com, Hepatitis C New Drug Pipeline, hcvdrugs.com, 2008.

Sulkowski, MS, Specific targeted antiviral therapy for hepatitis C, Current Gastroenterology Reports, March 2007.

www.hcvadvocate.org, AASLD: Investigational Antiviral Therapies for Hepatitis C, Liz Highleyman, Hepatitis C Support Project, 2007.

www.hcvadvocate.org, Hepatitis C Treatments in Current Clinical Development, Alan Franciscus, January 2008.

www.medscape.com, Specifically Targeted Antiviral Therapy (STAT-C) for Patients With Chronic Hepatitis C, Zobair M. Younossi, MD, MPH, FACP, FACG, Medscape, 2007.

www.projectsinknowledge.com, Revolutionizing the Way We Treat HCV: Stat-C, Ira M. Jacobson, MD, John G. McHutchison, MD, FRACP, Jean-Michel Pawlotsky, MD, PhD, Charles M. Rice, PhD, Projects In Knowledge, Inc., 2007.

Posted by Editors at February 12, 2008 02:17 PM

[Med Help]

Hi,

To add this to the Health Pages, just go to Health Pages at the top right (below Discussions). In there, click "Create New Health Page". I'd categorize this under Research and then add it in. You can play with the editing some if you'd like, but best is to bring it out of textpad right into the page.

Let me know if you have any issues.

MedHelp - Harry

[Mikkimoe]

Hi - I posted it but was not sure of the justification...particularily the page width - does it auto fill if you are pasting from a word doc? I adjusted it just in case it didn't. Also noticed that the edit page is not in sinc to the post page in regards to width.

Thanks for the service

[CockSparrow]

You Did fine. Perfect posting.
Its a bit hard to get used to isnt it.
Not exactly Wot You See is Wot you get is it.
CS

[Mikkimoe]

Yep tis true....but hey it's a great start...It is funny how I kept adjusting and it never got to the edge.

Harry - if I'm in word and adjust the right margin...what woud it be to fit in the frame?
(in inches)

Thanks

[Med Help]

Looks great! We're going to be putting in some enhancements to the editor over the next couple of weeks while will make it much easier to use and format, but you did great with it. For now, I wouldn't worry about the margins with the enhancements coming.

Thanks for adding one and keep them coming!

MedHelp - Harry

[zazza]

A lot of the older members have chosen not to "join the community" since we already were members when this feature started. I think many like me prefer not to be presented under "recent activity" or "community members". We have had access to all functions until now. It is not possible for us to create a health page unless we join the community. This requirement is probably keeping members who actually have a lot of valuable information from adding to the health pages. Please give all members access to this function!

[Proactive]

Ah Za, certainly you can appreciate the irony of being solicited to supply free content to the website and be tracked at the same time! (vbg)..You become "recent activity" in order to show the popularity of the site.and speaking of being herded through the stock rails, you also get tracked via any number of cookies (my McAfee security software goes into overdrive here)
google
doubleclick
medhelp media
google syndication
veiw.atdmt,com
pollmonkey.com
media adrevolver
google analytics
page2google
medhelepinternational 112.o07

[CockSparrow]

Who says the drugs make us paranoid.

Spybot doesnt like the adds. So accasionally pages dont display for me.

CS

[zazza]

LOL! Truth is I have not been this paranoid since I was doing drugs! Especially during the first third of tx, I would sneak out in the dark and go to the closest store, hoping sincerely no neighbors would see me. I recognized this feeling from long ago.

[Mikkimoe]

Hi Harry

I posted a Tip in the Health pages to do with browsing the site. Not sure it was the place to put it but all of us have had such a time losing our posts when browsing that I thought it would be a good add.

Let me know your thoughts or if the system may be changing and this is no longer an issue.

Thanks...mikki