Prior to the mid-1950s regular dental hygiene didnât hold much promise for oral health. Toothpastes had been formulated since ancient times with ingredients ranging from burnt oyster shells to ground areca nuts. Americans using a soap-and-water-based dentifrice were developing around 700 million cavities a year.
Drug delivery into muscle using an autoinjector, akin to the EpiPen used to treat serious allergic reactions, is faster and may be a more effective way to stop status epilepticus, a prolonged seizure lasting longer than five minutes, according to a study sponsored by the National Institutes of Health.
The loss of consciousness is followed by generalized body stiffening (called the tonic phase of the seizure) for 30 to 60 seconds, then by violent jerking (the clonic phase) for 30 to 60 seconds, after which the patient goes into a deep sleep (the postictal or after-seizure phase).