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Prodrug design has emerged as a dynamic field within pharmaceutical sciences, offering a promising avenue to enhance drug efficacy while mitigating side effects. Defined by Adrien Albert, prodrugs involve modifying parent medications to create inactive precursors that the body converts into active therapeutic agents. Prodrug design aims to optimize medicinal, pharmacokinetic, and pharmacodynamic goals, ultimately improving the therapeutic index and reducing toxicity. Over the past decade, significant strides have been made in prodrug design, particularly in methods enhancing oral bioavailability and targeted delivery to the brain and tumors. Prodrugs offer advantages such as improved pharmacokinetics, targeted drug delivery, reduced toxicity, enhanced stability, and simplified patient compliance. However, challenges such as complex design processes, unpredictable metabolism, and potential side effects must be navigated. Applications of prodrugs span various areas, including oral absorption enhancement, aqueous solubility improvement, lipophilicity alteration, carrier-mediated absorption, and reduction of pain on injection. Prodrugs also show promise in site-selective drug delivery, prolonged drug action, and toxicity reduction. Ongoing research is vital, especially in the early drug development stages, to harness the full potential of prodrug strategies. While prodrugs have become integral to drug design, realistic goals and a continued focus on addressing challenges will contribute to their successful clinical application. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: There has been a tremendous increase in number of cases of rhino-orbito-cerebral involvement with mucor in the COVID era, as reported from India. It is well established that management of ROCM involves early clinical and radiological diagnosis, reversal of underlying risk factors, prompt antifungal therapy and surgical debridement when indicated. Materials &Methods: Multiplanar MR imaging and CT scan were performed for brain, orbit and paranasal sinuses. All the cases were assessed for involvement of the paranasal sinuses, nasal cavities, orbits and brain. Results: 25 cases with ROCM were identified over 8 months. The mean age of the cases was 56.1 years. 18 of the 25 cases had a positive RT-PCR test result at the time of diagnosis with ROCM. 20cases had poorly controlled diabetes mellitus, 2 had a hematological malignancy, 2 had chronic kidney disease and 1 had ischemic heart disease. There was involvement of the paranasal sinuses, nasal cavities, orbits and brain inclusing necrosis in most of the cases. The number of cases identified during the interval is much higher than the numbers presenting in the prior 2 years during equivalent intervals than those reported in the literature in different settings in the pre-pandemic era. Conclusions: Rhino-orbito mucormycosis can have aggressive necrosis of the involved paranasal sinuses and orbits with or without cerebral extension. Hence, the correct diagnosis is imperative as prompt antifungal drugs and surgical debridement can significantly reduce mortality and morbidity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Twenty-seven patients with chronic lichen simplex involving various parts of the body were treated. Hydrocotyle was prescribed to 21 patients in different potencies (6c, 30c, 200c, 1 M, 10 M), Thuja to three patients (1 M, 10 M), Graphites (6c), Kali bich (30c) and Sulphur (200c) to one patient each during 1 year study period. Only two patients showed complete improvement with Thuja and one with Graphites. In other cases, the response was limited to partial relief of [corrected] itching.