PLT Test Blog

The new Chinese and old Colonial, side by side in central Shanghai     I do not speak Chinese, but fortunately Google does. I was sent some interesting links to some articles from China about Suramin, the potential autism therapy which many autism parents are eagerly awaiting.   Prepare for a long wait, but hopefully less long in China. My original post on Suramin for autism can be found  in the link below:- Suramin, the Purinome and Autism     I have never had a banner appear on my computer trying to sell me a Rolls Royce until today.   This is more proof, if I needed it, of how much China has changed since my first visit there as a teenager.   Back then there were a lot of bicycles; I still remember many were Flying Pigeon brand – not a name you forget. I just looked them up and since 1950, more than 500 million Flying Pigeon bicycles have been made - that is a lot bicycles. I even went to see a factory still producing steam locomotives ...

I t seems that autism is not the only “untreatable disease”, that does appear to be treatable.   At least twenty years ago, one apparently related condition was extensively treated off-label.   I am reading an intriguing book about the off-label treatment of Fibromyalgia in the 80s and 90s.   Off-label In medical-speak “off-label” is when a drug is use for a purpose it was never actually approved for.   If you have straight forward diseases, you would never need to use a drug “off label”. In some countries off-label prescribing by doctors is totally discouraged, in others, it is quite common. The problem occurs when it comes to paying for expensive drugs and, of course, who is to blame if things go wrong. Since many drug discoveries are actually stumbled upon by chance, off-label drug use is not as crazy as it may sound. Socialized Healthcare, Private Insurance and Lawsuits In the developed world, healthcare is provided either via some kind of private insurance as ...