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The Food and Drug Administration has approved Risperdal, an adult antipsychotic drug, for the symptomatic treatment of irritability in children and adolescents with autism. The approval is the first for the use of a drug to treat behaviors associated with autism in children. These behaviors are included under the general heading of irritability and include aggression, deliberate self-injury, and temper tantrums.
For high blood pressure (hypertension), a new class of drug, called a vasopeptidase blocker (inhibitor), has been developed. It decreases blood pressure by simultaneously dilating the peripheral arteries and increasing the body's loss of salt.
In the United States, an estimated 50 million unnecessary antibiotics are prescribed for viral respiratory infections.
When blood is exposed to air, it clots. Heparin allows the blood to come in direct contact with air without clotting.
In 1864, the first barbiturate (barbituric acid) was synthesized.