Malcolm VandenBurg is a British doctor involved in drug research, sexual health, medicolegal advice and stress management. [1]
VandenBurg qualified in St Bartholomew's Hospital in 1973 with a BSc in Physiology.
He lectured in medicine, as an Honorary Senior Registrar at the London Hospital and as an Honorary Lecturer in Clinical Pharmacology at St Bartholomew's Hospital
VandenBurg is a Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians, the American College of Clinical Pharmacology and the Faculty of Pharmaceutical Medicine
He established the London Hospital Hypertension Clinic in 1975. [2]
VandenBurg was director of cardiovascular research, Old Church Hospital Romford (1984–1996) and director of clinical research at Merck Sharpe & Dohme (1980–1984)
In 1996 he was appointed president and chief executive officer of global research consultancy IBRD – Rostrum Inc. [3]
VandenBurg has coordinated drug development programmes for over 30 pharmaceutical products and has over 100 publications in the field of clinical research. [2]
VandenBurg is a registered expert witness [4] who has given medicolegal advice to courts, authorities and media in a number of high-profile cases. [5]
He has written in the BMJ about the medicolegal implications of newer SSRIs [6] and of driving while under the influence of cannabis [7]
VandenBurg was an expert witness in the case of the Death of Sean Rigg in police custody in 2008. [4] He also advised the Northern Ireland Prisoner Ombudsman on the deaths of Aaron Hogg in Maghaberry Prison in 2011. [8] and Frances McKeown in Hydebank Wood Prison, [9] both in 2011.
VandenBurg advised the UK press on the use of propofol in the Death of Michael Jackson. [10] [11]
The British National Formulary (BNF) is a United Kingdom (UK) pharmaceutical reference book that contains a wide spectrum of information and advice on prescribing and pharmacology, along with specific facts and details about many medicines available on the UK National Health Service (NHS). Information within the BNF includes indication(s), contraindications, side effects, doses, legal classification, names and prices of available proprietary and generic formulations, and any other notable points. Though it is a national formulary, it nevertheless also includes entries for some medicines which are not available under the NHS, and must be prescribed and/or purchased privately. A symbol clearly denotes such drugs in their entry.
Atenolol is a beta blocker medication primarily used to treat high blood pressure and heart-associated chest pain. Atenolol, however, does not seem to improve mortality in those with high blood pressure. Other uses include the prevention of migraines and treatment of certain irregular heart beats. It is taken by mouth or by injection into a vein. It can also be used with other blood pressure medications.
Primidone, sold under various brand names, is a barbiturate medication that is used to treat partial and generalized seizures, as well as essential tremors. It is taken by mouth.
Nomifensine is a norepinephrine-dopamine reuptake inhibitor, i.e. a drug that increases the amount of synaptic norepinephrine and dopamine available to receptors by blocking the dopamine and norepinephrine reuptake transporters. This is a mechanism of action shared by some recreational drugs like cocaine and the medication tametraline. Research showed that the (S)-isomer is responsible for activity.
Guanfacine, sold under the brand name Tenex among others, is an oral medication used to treat attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and high blood pressure. Guanfacine is FDA-approved for monotherapy treatment of ADHD as well as being used for augmentation of other treatments, such as stimulants. Guanfacine is also used off-label to treat tic disorders, anxiety disorders and PTSD.
Benzoctamine is a drug that possesses sedative and anxiolytic properties. Marketed as Tacitin by Ciba-Geigy, it is different from most sedative drugs because in most clinical trials it does not produce respiratory depression, but actually stimulates the respiratory system. As a result, when compared to other sedative and anxiolytic drugs such as benzodiazepines like diazepam, it is a safer form of tranquilizing. However, when co-administered with other drugs that cause respiratory depression, like morphine, it can cause increased respiratory depression.
Fosazepam is a drug which is a benzodiazepine derivative; it is a water soluble derivative of diazepam. It has sedative and anxiolytic effects, and is a derivative of diazepam which has been substituted with a dimethylphosphoryl group to improve solubility in water.
Benoxaprofen, also known as Benoxaphen, is a chemical compound with the formula C16H12ClNO3. It is a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) of the propionic acid class, and was marketed under the brand name Opren in the United Kingdom and Europe by Eli Lilly and Company (commonly referred to as Lilly), and as Oraflex in the United States of America (USA). Lilly suspended sales of Oraflex in 1982 after reports from the British government and the United States Food and Drug Administration (US FDA) of adverse effects and deaths linked to the drug.
Aptiganel is an unsuccessful drug candidate which acts as a noncompetitive NMDA antagonist, and that was under development by Cambridge Neuroscience, Inc as a treatment for stroke. It has neuroprotective effects and was researched for potential use in the treatment of stroke, but despite positive results in animal studies, human trials showed limited efficacy, as well as undesirable side effects such as sedation and hallucinations, and clinical development was ultimately not continued.
Tisopurine is a drug used in the treatment of gout in some countries. It reduces uric acid production through inhibiting an early stage in its production.
Ciclazindol (WY-23409) is an antidepressant and anorectic drug of the tetracyclic chemical class that was developed in the mid to late 1970s, but was never marketed. It acts as a norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor, and to a lesser extent as a dopamine reuptake inhibitor. Ciclazindol has no effects on the SERT, 5-HT receptors, mACh receptors, or α-adrenergic receptors, and has only weak affinity for the H1 receptor. As suggested by its local anesthetic properties, ciclazindol may also inhibit sodium channels. It is known to block potassium channels as well.
Norpropoxyphene is a major metabolite of the opioid analgesic drug dextropropoxyphene, and is responsible for many of the side effects associated with use of this drug, especially the unusual toxicity seen during dextropropoxyphene overdose. It has weaker analgesic effects than dextropropoxyphene itself, but is a relatively potent pro-convulsant and blocker of sodium and potassium channels, particularly in heart tissue, which produces prolonged intracardiac conduction time and can lead to heart failure following even relatively minor overdoses. The toxicity of this metabolite makes dextropropoxyphene up to 10 times more likely to cause death following overdose compared to other similar mild opioid analgesics, and has led to dextropropoxyphene being withdrawn from the market in some countries.
Caroxazone is an antidepressant which was formerly used for the treatment of depression but is now no longer marketed. It acts as a reversible monoamine oxidase inhibitor (RIMA) of both MAO-A and MAO-B subtypes, with five-fold preference for the latter.
Mepiprazole is an anxiolytic drug of the phenylpiperazine group with additional antidepressant properties that is marketed in Spain. It acts as a 5-HT2A and α1-adrenergic receptor antagonist and inhibits the reuptake and induces the release of serotonin, dopamine, and norepinephrine to varying extents, and has been described as a serotonin antagonist and reuptake inhibitor (SARI). Controlled clinical trials of mepiprazole in patients with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) were also carried out and suggested some benefits of the drug in relieving symptoms of IBS in some patients. Similarly to other phenylpiperazines like trazodone, nefazodone, and etoperidone, mepiprazole produces mCPP as an active metabolite.
Tiamenidine (BAN, USAN, INN, also known as thiamenidine, Hoe 440) is an imidazoline compound that shares many of the pharmacological properties of clonidine. It is a centrally-acting α2 adrenergic receptor agonist (IC50 = 9.1 nM). It also acts as an α1-adrenergic receptor agonist to a far lesser extent (IC50 = 4.85 μM). In hypertensive volunteers, like clonidine, it significantly increased sinus node recovery time and lowered cardiac output. It was marketed (as tiamenidine hydrochloride) by Sanofi-Aventis under the brand name Sundralen for the management of essential hypertension.
Joseph Gavin Collier is a British retired clinical pharmacologist and emeritus professor of medicines policy at St George's Hospital and Medical School in London, whose early research included establishing the effect of aspirin on human prostaglandins and looking at the role of nitric oxide and angiotensin converting enzyme in controlling blood vessel tone and blood pressure. Later, in his national policy work, he helped change the way drugs are priced and bought by the NHS, and ensured that members of governmental advisory committees published their conflicts of interest.
John Douglas Swales (1935–2000) was an English cardiologist, professor of medicine, medical journal editor, and internationally recognised expert on hypertension.
Malcolm Davenport Milne (1915–1991) was an English physician and nephrologist.
A non-pharmaceutical intervention or non-pharmacological intervention (NPI) is any type of health intervention which is not primarily based on medication. Some examples include exercise, sleep improvement, or dietary habits.
Emma Harriet Baker is a British professor of clinical pharmacology and consultant physician in internal medicine at St George's Hospital, London. She has a specialist interest in people who have multiple medical conditions at the same time and take several medications, with a particular focus on lung disease. She is director of the UK's first BSc in clinical pharmacology, clinical vice president of the British Pharmacological Society and training programme director at Health Education England.