Journal of Pharmaceutical Health Care and Sciences最新文献

{"title":"An evaluation of pharmacists' general attitudes, knowledge, and phobias regarding medications that include corticosteroids: a cross-sectional study.","authors":"Muna Barakat, Samar Thiab, Rana Abu Farha, Anas O Alshweiki, Roa'a Thaher, Asem Alsughaier, Diana Malaeb","doi":"10.1186/s40780-024-00329-x","DOIUrl":"10.1186/s40780-024-00329-x","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Corticosteroid-containing medications are widely accessible in various forms, including topical, injectable, and inhaled formulations. Due to uncertain safety profiles, healthcare providers, including pharmacists, often express apprehension when dispensing these drugs. This cross-sectional study assesses the knowledge, attitudes, and phobia of Jordanian pharmacists regarding corticosteroid-containing medications.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Conducted through a self-administered online questionnaire.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>the study reveals that dermatological conditions and respiratory disorders are the primary indications for prescribing corticosteroid-containing drugs. The most reported side effects among pharmacists' patients include increased appetite, diabetes, and skin thinning. Pharmacists generally exhibit acceptable knowledge, with a median score of 9.0 out of 11.0 (IQR = 3.0). Over two-thirds of pharmacists (69.9%) achieve a high knowledge score (Bloom's cut-off point ≥ 8.8). However, only 55.7% are aware that corticosteroids may induce mood changes. High phobia scores, particularly concerning increased blood pressure and osteoporosis risks, indicate pharmacist reservations in corticosteroid dispensing. Interestingly, pharmacists in rural areas display lower knowledge scores, while those working outside community pharmacies exhibit lower phobia scores compared to their counterparts in urban areas and community pharmacies, respectively.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>Despite generally good knowledge levels, the study underscores high phobia scores among Jordanian pharmacists regarding corticosteroid dispensing, particularly due to concerns about blood pressure elevation and osteoporosis risks. This suggests a potential need for targeted educational interventions and support systems to enhance pharmacist confidence and optimize corticosteroid usage while minimizing associated risks.</p>","PeriodicalId":16730,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Pharmaceutical Health Care and Sciences","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.0,"publicationDate":"2024-02-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10832149/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"139672049","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Public hospital pharmacists' knowledge, attitudes, and practices for antibiotic stewardship implementation in Limpopo Province, South Africa.","authors":"Tiyani Comfort Mthombeni, Johanita Riétte Burger, Martha Susanna Lubbe, Marlene Julyan","doi":"10.1186/s40780-024-00331-3","DOIUrl":"10.1186/s40780-024-00331-3","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Hospital pharmacists are important in antibiotic stewardship programs (ASP), a global strategy to combat antibiotic resistance (ABR). South African public hospitals have limited ASP implementation. This study describes Limpopo Provincial Hospital pharmacists' knowledge, attitudes, and practice toward ASP implementation.</p><p><strong>Method: </strong>A questionnaire to explore pharmacists' knowledge, attitudes and practices regarding ASP implementation comprised 43 questions hosted online. A link was sent by invitation e-mail to eligible respondents in November 2021. Five questions on respondents' demographics, 15 questions on ASP knowledge, 10 Likert scale questions on attitude, and 13 on ASP practices were included. Mean (standard deviation (SD)) knowledge and attitude scores and a median (interquartile range (IQR)) practice score was calculated. Associations between categorical variables were assessed using chi-square/Fisher's exact analysis (p < 0.05), with Cramér's V as effect size.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>The survey yielded 35 responses (13.1%). Twenty (57.1%) respondents were female. Seventeen (48.6%) respondents were between the ages of 31 and 40 years. The mean knowledge score of respondents was 9.8 (2.6) (N = 34), with knowledge gaps on One Health and socioeconomic determinates of ABR. Ten (29.6%) respondents thought One Health discouraged multi-sector collaboration, and nineteen (55.9%) respondents thought ASP was the only strategic response to ABR. Sixteen (47.1%) respondents did not know that poor access to clean water accelerates ABR and seventeen (50.0%) did not know that poverty could be a determinant for antibiotic use. The mean respondent attitude score was 8.0 (1.7) (N = 28). Twenty-seven (96.4%) respondents agreed that ASP was necessary and agreed to participate in ASP respectively. All 28 (100.0%) respondents agreed to lead an ASP. The median (IQR) respondents' practice score was - 2.0 (IQR: -6.0-5.8) (N = 16). Respondents were inconsistently (never, sometimes, every time) participating in multi-disciplinary forums (6/16, 37.5%) and expressed a desire for training (11/13, 84.6%) on ASP through in-service (7/27, 25.9%). Respondents thought ASP training should include medical officers (12/29, 41.4%) and nurses (9/29, 31.8%). Knowledge score was associated with gender (p = 0.048; V = 0.416) and attitude score (p = 0.013; V = 0.556).</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>Our study found pharmacists had good knowledge and a positive attitude toward ASP implementation but poor ASP practices. A multi-disciplinary in-service training could address identified knowledge and practice gaps.</p>","PeriodicalId":16730,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Pharmaceutical Health Care and Sciences","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.0,"publicationDate":"2024-02-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10832237/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"139671998","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"In-vitro evaluation of Indigofera heterantha extracts for antibacterial, antifungal and anthelmintic activities.","authors":"Showkat Ahmad Bhat, Mohammed Iqbal Zargar, Shahid Ud Din Wani, Ishfaq Mohiuddin, Mubashir Hussain Masoodi, Faiyaz Shakeel, Mohammad Ali, Seema Mehdi","doi":"10.1186/s40780-024-00328-y","DOIUrl":"10.1186/s40780-024-00328-y","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Multidrug-resistant bacterial strains cause several serious infections that can be fatal, such as Enterococcus faecium, Staphylococcus aureus, Klebsiella pneumonia, Acinetobacter baumannii, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and Enterobacteriaceae (often referred to as ESKAPE pathogens). Since ancient times, several indigenous medical systems in India have utilized diverse medicinal plants (approximately 80,000 species) as conventional treatments for a variety of illnesses. A member of the Fabaceae family, also referred to as \"Himalayan indigo,\" Indigofera heterantha Wall, is well known for its therapeutic properties.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>The present study investigated the antibacterial, antifungal and antihelmintic properties of the roots, bark, leaves, and flowers of I. heterantha from the Kashmir Himalayas. The effectiveness of the extracts against bacteria, fungi, and earthworms. Three of the tested organisms for bacteria were ESKAPE pathogens, as they are responsible for creating fatal bacterial infections. The antifungal potency of I. heterantha aqueous and methanolic extracts was evaluated using the Agar Well Diffusion Assay. The antihelmintic activity was carried out on an adult Pheretima posthuma Indian earth worm, which shares physiological and anatomical similarities with human intestinal roundworm parasites.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>The methanolic extracts of root and bark have shown prominent activity against all bacterial strains, whereas aqueous extracts of flower, root, and leaves have shown promising activity against Staphylococcus aureus. The aqueous extract demonstrated good activity against S. cerevisiae at a concentration of 200 mg/ml with a zone of inhibition of 16 mm, while the methanolic extract displayed comparable activity against the fungal strains. The remaining two strains, P. crysogenum and A. fumigatus, were only moderately active in response to the extracts. All the extracts have shown anthelmintic activity except aqueous flower.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>These results will pave the way for the bioassay-guided isolation of bioactive constituents that may act as hits for further development as potential antibacterial agents against drug-resistant microbial and helminthic infections.</p>","PeriodicalId":16730,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Pharmaceutical Health Care and Sciences","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2024-01-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10809583/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"139546757","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Evaluation of hospital pharmacists' activities using additional reimbursement for infection prevention as an indicator in small and medium-sized hospitals.","authors":"Yuichi Tasaka, Takeshi Uchikura, Shiro Hatakeyama, Daisuke Kikuchi, Masami Tsuchiya, Ryohkan Funakoshi, Taku Obara","doi":"10.1186/s40780-023-00327-5","DOIUrl":"10.1186/s40780-023-00327-5","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Hospitals in Japan established the healthcare delivery system from FY 2018 to 2021 by acquiring an additional reimbursement for infection prevention (ARIP) of category 1 or 2. However, research on outcomes of ARIP applications related to the practice of hospital pharmacists is scarce.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>This study assessed the activities performed by hospital pharmacists in hospitals with 100 to 299 beds, using ARIP acquirement as an indicator, using data from an annual questionnaire survey conducted in 2020 by the Japanese Society of Hospital Pharmacists on the status of hospital pharmacy departments. Out of the survey items, this study used those related to hospital functions, number of beds, number of pharmacists, whether the hospital is included in the diagnosis procedure combination (DPC) system, average length of stay, and nature of work being performed in the analysis. The relationship between the number of beds per pharmacist and state of implementation of pharmacist services or the average length of hospital stay was considered uncorrelated when the absolute value of the correlation coefficient was within 0-0.2, whereas the relationship was considered to have a weak, moderate, or strong correlation when the absolute value ranged at 0.2-0.4, 0.4-0.7, or 0.7-1, respectively.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Responses were received from 3612 (recovery rate: 43.6%) hospitals. Of these, 210 hospitals meeting the criteria for ARIP 1 with 100-299 beds, and 245 hospitals meeting the criteria for ARIP 2 with 100-299 beds, were included in our analysis. There was a significant difference in the number of pharmacists, with a larger number in ARIP 1 hospitals. For the pharmacist services, significant differences were observed, with a more frequency in ARIP 1 hospitals in pharmaceutical management and guidance to pre-hospitalization patients, sterile drug processing of injection drugs and therapeutic drug monitoring. In DPC hospitals with ARIP 1 (173 hospitals) and 2 (105 hospitals), the average number of beds per pharmacist was 21.7 and 24.7, respectively, while the average length of stay was 14.3 and 15.4 d, respectively. Additionally, a weak negative correlation was observed between the number of pharmacist services with \"Fairly well\" or \"Often\" and the number of beds per pharmacist for both ARIP 1 (R = -0.207) and ARIP 2 (R = -0.279) DPC hospitals. Furthermore, a weak correlation (R = 0.322) between the average number of beds per pharmacist and the average length of hospital stay was observed for ARIP 2 hospitals.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Our results suggest that lower beds per pharmacist might lead to improved pharmacist services in 100-299 beds DPC hospitals with ARIP 1 or 2. The promotion of proactive efforts in hospital pharmacist services and fewer beds per pharmacist may relate to shorter hospital stays especially in small and medium-sized hospitals with ARIP 2 when ARIP acquisition was","PeriodicalId":16730,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Pharmaceutical Health Care and Sciences","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.0,"publicationDate":"2024-01-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10782696/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"139417310","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Validation of an automated sample preparation module directly connected to LC-MS/MS (CLAM-LC-MS/MS system) and comparison with conventional immunoassays for quantitation of tacrolimus and cyclosporin A in a clinical setting.","authors":"Tsutomu Shimada, Daisuke Kawakami, Arimi Fujita, Rintaro Yamamoto, Satoshi Hara, Kiyoaki Ito, Ichiro Mizushima, Shinji Kitajima, Yasunori Iwata, Norihiko Sakai, Mitsuhiro Kawano, Takashi Wada, Yoshimichi Sai","doi":"10.1186/s40780-023-00318-6","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1186/s40780-023-00318-6","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Therapeutic drug monitoring (TDM) systems generally use either liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) or immunoassay, though both methodologies have disadvantages. In this study, we aimed to evaluate whether a CLAM-LC-MS/MS system, which consists of a sample preparation module directly connected to LC-MS/MS, could be used for clinical TDM work for immunosuppressive drugs in whole blood, which requires a hemolytic process. For this purpose, we prospectively validated this system for clinical measurement of tacrolimus and cyclosporin A in patients' whole blood. The results were also compared with those of commercial immunoassays.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Whole blood from patients treated with tacrolimus or cyclosporin A at the Department of Nephrology and Departments of Rheumatology, Kanazawa University Hospital, from May 2018 to July 2019 was collected with informed consent, and drug concentrations were measured by CLAM-LC-MS/MS and by chemiluminescence immunoassay (CLIA) for tacrolimus and affinity column-mediated immunoassay (ACMIA) for cyclosporin A. Correlations between the CLAM-LC-MS/MS and immunoassay results were analyzed.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Two hundred and twenty-four blood samples from 80 patients were used for tacrolimus measurement, and 76 samples from 21 patients were used for cyclosporin A. Intra- and inter-assay precision values of quality controls were less than 7%. There were significant correlations between CLAM-LC-MS/MS and the immunoassays for tacrolimus and cyclosporin A (Spearman rank correlation coefficients: 0.861, 0.941, P < 0.00001 in each case). The drug concentrations measured by CLAM-LC-MS/MS were about 20% lower than those obtained using the immunoassays. CLAM-LC-MS/MS maintenance requirements did not interfere with clinical operations. Compared to manual pretreatment, automated pretreatment by CLAM showed lower inter-assay precision values and greatly reduced the pretreatment time.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>The results obtained by CLAM-LC-MS/MS were highly correlated with those of commercial immunoassay methods. CLAM-LC-MS/MS offers advantages in clinical TDM practice, including simple, automatic pretreatment, low maintenance requirement, and avoidance of interference.</p>","PeriodicalId":16730,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Pharmaceutical Health Care and Sciences","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.0,"publicationDate":"2024-01-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10773076/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"139403331","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Health-related quality of life and its associated factors among hemophilia patients: experience from Ethiopian Hemophilia Treatment Centre.","authors":"Sitina Iyar, Girma Tekle Gebremariam, Dessale Abate Beyene, Amha Gebremedhin, Tamrat Assefa Tadesse","doi":"10.1186/s40780-023-00326-6","DOIUrl":"10.1186/s40780-023-00326-6","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Hemophilia is a rare genetic condition that is often overlooked and underdiagnosed, particularly in low-income countries. Long-term spontaneous joint bleeding and soft tissues can have a significant negative impact on a patient's health-related quality of life (HRQoL). The objective of this study was to assess HRQoL and its associated factors in Ethiopian patients with hemophilia.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>A cross-sectional survey was conducted among patients with hemophilia at Tikur Anbessa Specialized Hospital (TASH) in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Patients were recruited consecutively during follow-up visits. The European Quality of Life Group's 5-Domain Questionnaires at five levels (EQ-5D-5L) and Euro Quality of Life Group's Visual Analog Scale (EQ-VAS) instruments were used to assess HRQoL. The EQ-5D-5L utility score was computed using the disutility coefficients. We applied the Krukal-Wallis and Mann-Whitney U tests to determine the differences in EQ-5D-5L and EQ-VAS utility scores between patient groups. A multivariate Tobit regression model was used to identify factors associated with HRQoL. Statistical analyses were performed using STATA version 14 and statistical significance was determined at p < 0.05.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>A total of 105 patients with hemophilia participated in the study, with a mean (standard deviation (SD) age of 21.09 (± 7.37] years. The median (IQR) EQ-5D-5L utility and EQ-VAS scores were 0.86 (0.59-0.91) and 75 (60.0-80.0), respectively. Age was significantly negatively associated with the EQ-5D-5L utility index and EQ-VAS (β = -0.020, 95 CI = -0.034, -0.007) and β = -0.974, 95% CI = -1.72, 0.225), respectively. The duration since hemophilia diagnosis (β-0.011, 95% CI, 0.001-0.023) and living out of Addis Ababa (β = -0.128, 95% CI, -0.248-, -0.007) were also significantly negatively associated with the EQ-5D-5L utility index..</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>The median EQ-5D-5L utility and EQ-VAS scores of patients with hemophilia were 0.86 (0.59-0.91) and 75 (60.0-80.0), respectively. Older age, living far from the Hemophilia Treatment Center (HTC), and longer duration since diagnosis were significantly negatively associated with HRQoL. HRQoL may be improved by providing factor concentrates, decentralizing HTCs in different parts of the country, increasing awareness of bleeding disorders among health professionals, and providing psychosocial support to affected patients.</p>","PeriodicalId":16730,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Pharmaceutical Health Care and Sciences","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.0,"publicationDate":"2024-01-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10762823/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"139087309","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Five years of safety profile of bevacizumab: an analysis of real-world pharmacovigilance and randomized clinical trials.","authors":"Li Wang, Yibo Fei, Han Qu, Haiyang Zhang, Yuanyuan Wang, Zhenghua Wu, Guorong Fan","doi":"10.1186/s40780-023-00314-w","DOIUrl":"10.1186/s40780-023-00314-w","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Objective: </strong>Bevacizumab is a monoclonal antibody against vascular endothelial growth factor. It has a wide range of clinical applications in various cancers and retinal diseases. The drugs entered the Chinese market by a large margin in 2017, and the user population changed to some extent. This study reevaluated the safety of bevacizumab through an analysis of the World Pharmacovigilance database (Food and Drug Administration Open Vigil 2.1) in conjunction with a comprehensive meta-analysis of RCTs.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Real-world pharmacovigilance data originating from case reports were mined using Open Vigil and coded at the preferred term (PT) level using the Standardized MedDRA Query. Proportional reporting ratios (PRR) and reporting odds ratios (ROR) were used to detect safety signals. Eligible items were screened by searching PubMed, Wanfang, and Web of Science, and data were extracted for systematic review and meta-analysis using RevMan 5.4 software.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Analysis of the drug pharmacovigilance database revealed that the most significant PRRs were limb decortication syndrome (PRR = 2926), stomal varices (PRR = 549), anastomotic (PRR = 457) and ureteral fistula (PRR = 406). Most safety signals at the PT level emerged as various types of injuries, toxicities, operational complications, systemic diseases, various reactions at the administration site, hematological and lymphatic disorders, and gastrointestinal disorders. Adverse reactions such as nasal septal perforation (PRR = 47.502), necrotizing fasciitis (PRR = 20.261), and hypertensive encephalopathy (PRR = 18.288) listed as rare in drug specifications should not be ignored with a high signal in the real world. A total of 8 randomized controlled trials (RCTs) were included in the meta-analysis, and the overall risk of adverse reactions following bevacizumab administration was relatively low, indicating a good safety profile (HR = 1.19, 95% CI:0.85 ~ 1.65, p = 0.32).</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>The frequent adverse reactions of bevacizumab occurring in the real world are consistent with the data provided in RCTs and drug specifications. However, adverse reactions such as nasal septum perforation, necrotizing fasciitis, hypertensive encephalopathy and so on, listed as rare in drug specifications, may have a high signal of correlation in the real world, which all requires active monitoring and timely adjustment of bevacizumab posology during its clinical use.</p>","PeriodicalId":16730,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Pharmaceutical Health Care and Sciences","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.0,"publicationDate":"2024-01-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10763108/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"139087308","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"A case with a trend of QT interval prolongation due to the introduction of methadone to a pancreatic cancer patient on levofloxacin.","authors":"Ryusuke Ouchi, Munenori Nagao, Shinju Suzuki, Toshihiro Yamagata, Mie Chiba, Naoko Kurata, Kensuke Usui, Takashi Watanabe, Kaori Koyama, Kouji Okada","doi":"10.1186/s40780-023-00322-w","DOIUrl":"10.1186/s40780-023-00322-w","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>As methadone can prevent the development of opioid resistance, it has application in alleviating cancer-related pain that proves challenging to manage with other opioids. QT interval prolongation is a serious side effect of methadone treatment, with some reported deaths. In particular, owing to the increased risk of QT interval prolongation, caution should be exercised when using it in combination with drugs that also prolong the QT interval.</p><p><strong>Case presentation: </strong>This study presents a case in which methadone was introduced to a patient (a man in his 60s) already using levofloxacin, which could prolong the QT interval-a serious side effect of methadone treatment-and whose QTc value tended to increase. Given that levofloxacin can increase the risk of QT interval prolongation, we considered switching to other antibacterial agents before introducing methadone. However, because the neurosurgeon judged that controlling a brain abscess was a priority, low-dose methadone was introduced with continuing levofloxacin. Owing to the risks, we performed frequent electrocardiograms. Consequently, we responded before the QTc increased enough to meet the diagnostic criteria for QT interval prolongation. Consequently, we prevented the occurrence of drug-induced long QT syndrome.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>When considering the use of methadone for intractable cancer pain, it is important to eliminate possible risk factors for QT interval prolongation. However, as it may be difficult to discontinue concomitant drugs owing to comorbidities, there could be cases in which the risk of QT interval prolongation could increase, even with the introduction of low-dose methadone. In such cases, frequent monitoring, even with simple measurements such as those used in this case, is likely to prevent progression to more serious conditions.</p>","PeriodicalId":16730,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Pharmaceutical Health Care and Sciences","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.0,"publicationDate":"2024-01-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10763223/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"139087307","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Temporal trends in antipsychotic prescriptions for pediatric patients using an administrative hospital database in Japan: a retrospective study.","authors":"Daisuke Kikuchi, Taku Obara, Ryo Obara, Hiroaki Hino, Naoto Suzuki, Shota Kashiwagura, Takashi Watanabe, Ryusuke Ouchi, Kensuke Usui, Kouji Okada","doi":"10.1186/s40780-023-00324-8","DOIUrl":"10.1186/s40780-023-00324-8","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Schizophrenia is a psychiatric disorder characterized by hallucinations, delusions, and other symptoms. Although treatment guidelines for schizophrenia have been established in Japan, drugs are not recommended for pediatric schizophrenia. Additionally, the temporal trends in prescribing antipsychotics for pediatric patients with schizophrenia are unclear. Therefore, we aimed to clarify the trends in antipsychotic prescriptions for Japanese pediatric outpatients from 2015 to 2022.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Administrative data (as of November 2023) of Japanese pediatric outpatients with schizophrenia aged 0-18 years who visited acute-care diagnosis procedure combination hospitals between January 1, 2015, and December 31, 2022, were included in this study. The target drugs for schizophrenia were all indicated for treating schizophrenia and marketed in Japan as of December 2022. Annual prescription trends for antipsychotics during this period were calculated based on their proportions. The Cochran-Armitage trend test was used to evaluate the proportion of prescriptions for each antipsychotic.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>The main drugs prescribed for these patients were aripiprazole and risperidone. Among male patients, the proportion of prescriptions for aripiprazole increased significantly from 21.2% in 2015 to 35.9% in 2022, whereas that for risperidone decreased significantly from 47.9% in 2015 to 36.7% in 2022 (both P < 0.001). Among female patients, the proportion of prescriptions for aripiprazole increased significantly from 21.6% in 2015 to 35.6% in 2022, whereas that for risperidone decreased significantly from 38.6% in 2015 to 24.8% in 2022 (both P < 0.001).</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Aripiprazole and risperidone were primarily prescribed for pediatric schizophrenia in Japan during the study period. Additionally, the proportion of aripiprazole prescriptions increased over time.</p>","PeriodicalId":16730,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Pharmaceutical Health Care and Sciences","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.0,"publicationDate":"2024-01-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10763017/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"139087310","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Influence of filtering on the effective concentration and sterility of a 2% cyclosporine ophthalmic solution: a quality improvement perspective.","authors":"Masakazu Ozaki, Toshihiko Kobayashi, Aki Fujinaga, Mitsuaki Nishioka, Kyoko Shikichi, Satoshi Okano, Yasuhito Sakai, Sayumi Fujii, Nobuaki Matsui, Miwako Takasago, Naoto Okada, Takahiro Yamasaki, Takashi Kitahara","doi":"10.1186/s40780-023-00323-9","DOIUrl":"10.1186/s40780-023-00323-9","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Pharmaceutical companies do not sell formulations for all diseases; thus, healthcare workers have to treat some diseases by concocting in-hospital preparations. An example is the high-concentration 2% cyclosporine A (CyA) ophthalmic solution. Utilizing a filter in sterility operations is a general practice for concocting in-hospital preparations, as is the case for preparing a 2% CyA ophthalmic solution. However, whether filtering is appropriate concerning the active ingredient content and bacterial contamination according to the post-preparing quality control of a 2% CyA ophthalmic solution is yet to be verified.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>We conducted particle size, preparation concentration, and bacterial contamination studies to clarify aforementioned questions. First, we measured the particle size of CyA through a laser diffraction particle size distribution. Next, we measured the concentration after preparation with or without a 0.45-µm filter operation using an electrochemiluminescence immunoassay. Finally, bacterial contamination tests were conducted using an automated blood culture system to prepare a 2% CyA ophthalmic solution without a 0.45 μm filtering. Regarding the pore size of the filter in this study, it was set to 0.45 μm with reference to the book (the 6th edition) with recipes for the preparation of in-hospital preparations edited by the Japanese Society of Hospital Pharmacists.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>CyA had various particle sizes; approximately 30% of the total particles exceeded 0.45 μm. The mean ± standard deviation of filtered and non-filtered CyA concentrations in ophthalmic solutions were 346.51 ± 170.76 and 499.74 ± 76.95ng/mL, respectively (p = 0.011). Regarding bacterial contamination tests, aerobes and anaerobes microorganisms were not detected in 14 days of culture.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Due to the results of this study, the concentration of CyA may be reduced by using a 0.45-µm filter during the preparation of CyA ophthalmic solutions, and furthermore that the use of a 0.45-µm filter may not contribute to sterility when preparing CyA ophthalmic solutions.</p>","PeriodicalId":16730,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Pharmaceutical Health Care and Sciences","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.0,"publicationDate":"2023-12-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10752018/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"139040148","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}