Teratogenicities of ophthalmic drugs. I. Antiviral ophthalmic drugs

Nonradioactive idoxuridine (IDU,5-iodo-2'-deoxyuridine), while not teratogenic to rats, does produce fetal maliformations in rabbits when administered topically to the eye in doses similar to those used clinically, 0.1% four times a day for 12 days. These maliformations include exophthalmos and clubbing of the forelegs. By contrast, trifluorothymidine (F3TdR), another highly effective antiherpetic agent currently under investigation but not available for general use, was found not to be teratogenic to rabbits, even when given in concentrations tenfold greater than the doses used to produce idoxuridine teratogenicity.

Double-bind cross-over tiral of flurbiprofen and phenylbutazone in ankylosing spondylitis

A double-blind cross-over study in 35 patients with ankylosing spondylitis was carried out comparing flurbiprofen (150 mg daily)-a new non-steroidal anti-inflammatory agent-with phenylbutazone (300 mg daily) over a four-week period. Flurbiprofen was well tolerated and shown to have therapeutic efficacy approaching that of phenylbutazone. The results suggest that flurbiprofen may prove a valuable alternative in the treatment of ankylosing spondylitis, and longterm efficacy and tolerance studies are clearly indicated.