Text 1

Right Drug, Wrong Patient

About IMS Health:

    IMS HEALTH is the world's leading provider of information solutions to the pharmaceutical and healthcare industries. With nearly 50 years of experience, they use leading-edge technologies to transform billions of pharmaceutical records collected from thousands of sources worldwide into valuable strategic insights for our clients.

    IMS HEALTH's market intelligence and analyses give customers the critical facts they need at every stage of the pharmaceutical life cycle─from the earliest stages of research and development through product launch, product maturation and patent expiration.

    With more than 5,000 professionals in 100 countries─from Austria to Australia─from China to Costa Rica—from Saudi Arabia to Senegal─IMS HEALTH is a trusted healthcare-industry strategic partner, with thousands of customers and annual revenue in 2001 of $1.3 billion.

About U.S. Pharmacopeia:

    In pursuit of its mission to promote public health, USP establishes state-of-the-art standards to ensure the quality of medicines for human and veterinary use. USP also develops authoritative information about the appropriate use of medicines. National health care practitioner reporting programs support USP's standards and information programs. In addition, USP supports many public service programs.

Language notes:

1. The new prescription that her mother, Peggie, had gotten filled at the Rite Aid in Rock Hill, S.C., was for Ritalin, a drug used to treat attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder.

（新处方上开的药是“利他林”，这是她母亲佩吉在南卡罗来纳州洛克山的“莱特相助”药店配的药，一种用来治疗注意力亢奋/不足的药。）

Prescription: an instruction written by a medical practitioner that authorizes a patient to be issued with a medicine or treatment.
    e.g. He scribbled a prescription for tranquillizer.

2. The pharmacy industry insists that worries over error rates are overblown.

 (配药业坚持认为对出错率的担忧被过分渲染。)

Overblown: excessively inflated or pretentious.
    e.g. a world of overblown egos.

3. These third-party payers are imposing ever-lower reimbursement rates on pharmacies, which must churn out a high volume of prescriptions to keep profit margins up.

(这些第三方付款者使配药业得到的付还率持续走低，这必然造成为保持利润增长而大量配药。)

Churn something out: produce something routinely or mechanically, especially in large quantities.
    e.g. Artists continued to churn out uninteresting works.

4. Against this backdrop, too many people are taking the prescription transaction for granted.

(在这种背景下，有太多的人想当然地看待配药。)

Backdrop: the setting or background for a scene, effect, or situation.
    e.g. The conference took place against a backdrop of increasing diplomatic activities.

5.And there's no dearth of homework: new drugs are pouring into the market, stimulated by a 1992 program shortening the FDA's drug-approval times.

(而且，家庭作业是不会少的：在1992年缩减FDA药品批准时间的项目的促动下，新的药品就如洪水般涌入了市场。)

Dearth: a scarcity of lack of something.
   e.g. There is a dearth of evidence.

6. Nevada's board of pharmacy reprimanded Paxton's pharmacist, saying he should have warned her of the potential for allergic reaction.

(内华达配药业委员会对帕克斯顿的药剂师进行了斥责，认为他应该警告病人此药有可能导致过敏反应。)

Reprimand: rebuke, especially officially.
    e.g. Officials were reprimanded or dismissed for poor work.

7. A jury levied an $810 000 judgment against the pharmacy.

(陪审团判决药店赔偿81万美金。)

Levy: impose a tax, fee, or fine.
    e.g. There will be powers to levy the owners.

8. Of the 48 pharmacies using computers to flag adverse interactions, 29 percent had programs that failed to issue an alert.

(在48家使用计算机指明副作用的药店中，有29%的药店的程序没能给予警告。)

Flag: mark for attention.
   e.g. Problems often flag the need for organizational change.

9. Include over-the-counter pain or cold remedies, vitamins and herbal supplements.

(这包括去痛和感冒药、维他命以及草本补给品等非处方药。)

Over-the-counter: by ordinary retail purchase, with no need for prescription or license.
    e.g. over-the-counter medicines

Text 2

Hidden Dangers of Over the Counter Drugs

About The American Pharmaceutical Association:

    The American Pharmaceutical Association (APhA), the national professional society of pharmacists, was founded in 1852 and is the first established and largest professional association of pharmacists in the United States. The more than 50,000 members of APhA include practicing pharmacists, pharmaceutical scientists, pharmacy students, pharmacy technicians, and others interested in advancing the profession.

    The Association is a leader in providing professional information and education for pharmacists and an advocate for improved health of the American public through the provision of comprehensive pharmaceutical care.

About The American Liver Foundation:

    The American Liver Foundation is a national, voluntary nonprofit organization dedicated to the prevention, treatment, and cure of hepatitis and other liver diseases through research, education and advocacy.

Language notes:

1. Here are some of the pitfalls.

(以下列出的是一些误区)

Pitfall: a hidden or unexpected danger or difficulty.
   e.g. Several pitfalls remain in the way of an agreement.

2. The pain would throb and pulsate, waking him out of a sound sleep and making him nauseated.

(这疼能疼得钻心，让他从熟睡中疼醒，然后呕吐。)

Pulsate: produce a regular throbbing sensation or sound.
    e.g. a pulsating headache

3. "This is the classic rebound headache," says Dr. Ninan T. Mathew, clinic director.

(“这是典型的复发性头疼，” 诊所主任尼南·特·马休医生说。)

Rebound: the recurrence of a medical condition, especially after withdrawal of medication.
    e.g. rebound hypertension.

4. Combining certain prescription drugs for the former and too much of an OTC drug for the latter may reduce the effectiveness of their blood-pressure medication.

(服用某些处方药治疗前者、大量使用某种OTC药治疗后者，这种结合治疗的办法会降低血压药的疗效。)

Medication: the use or application of medicines.

5. Later, when the ambulance came for him at his suburban Washington home, he was in a coma with liver failure.

（后来，当救护车赶到他在华盛顿郊区的家中时，他已经由于肝功衰竭而昏迷了。）

Coma: a state of deep unconsciousness that last for a prolonged or indefinite period, caused especially by severe injury or illness.
   e.g. A road crash left him in a coma.

6. Under a new FDA regulation, all pain-relief and fever-reducing products will carry labels warning anyone consuming more than three drinks per day to consult a doctor before taking the product.

(根据 FDA的新规定，所有的止痛以及退烧药品上将附有标签，用以提醒每天喝三杯酒以上者在服用前需向医生咨询。)

In this sentence, "warning anyone consuming more than three drinks per day to consult a doctor before taking the product" modifies "labels"， "consuming more than three drinks per day" modifies "anyone".

7． Help for consumers is on the way.

（为消费者提供的帮助正在进行之中。）

On the way: about to arrive or happen.
   e.g. there's more snow on the way.

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