Monitoring medicines use: the role of the clinical pharmacologist

Impact of a Clinical Decision Support System on the Change over Time in the Anticholinergic Load in Geriatric Patients: The SADP-Antichol Study

PURPOSE

Anticholinergic drugs can cause adverse events (AEs) in older adults. Clinical decision support systems (CDSSs) can detect prescriptions with a high anticholinergic load. Our starting hypothesis was that the anticholinergic load could be reduced by combining a CDSS with a strategy for generating pharmacist interventions. The objective of the present study was to assess the impact of this combination on the change over time in the anticholinergic load in hospitalized older adults.

METHODS

This prospective, single-centre study was divided into two 6-week periods. During the interventional period, a pharmacist analyzed the alerts generated by the CDSS for 30 targeted anticholinergic drugs and decided whether to issue a pharmacist intervention. A control period corresponds to standard care. The primary endpoint of the study is the delta of the anticholinergic load between the alert and hospital discharge; the secondary endpoint is the incidence of anticholinergic adverse events (AEs).

RESULTS

Of the 144 alerts generated, 87 were considered to be relevant (36 in the interventional period and 51 in the control period). A significant difference was observed between the delta anticholinergic load between the experimental and control periods (1.61 vs. 0.67, p-value = 0.0115). For the targeted drugs (n = 94) over the 87 alerts, 46.8% were for antihistamines and 21.3% were for desloratadine. Of the 36 pharmacist interventions sent by the pharmacist, 19 (52.8%) were accepted. The most deprescribed drug class was the antihistamine class (n = 7), and the most deprescribed drug was amitriptyline (n = 5). Among these 87 patients with alerts, the correlation between the anticholinergic load and the number of AEs was not statistically significant (p = 0.887). The most common AE affecting the peripheral nervous system was constipation (28.6%), and the most common AE affecting the central nervous system was confusion (29.9%).

CONCLUSIONS

Our results showed that the combination of specific CDSS rules with pharmacist-mediated risk management procedures could further reduce the anticholinergic load in hospitalized older adults, relative to routine care. It remains to be determined whether this reduction in the anticholinergic load has an impact on the incidence of peripheral and central anticholinergic AEs, and thus the health of these patients.

Medication errors in hematology-oncology ward by consultation: The role of the clinical pharmacologist

Background

The aim was to describe, evaluate and document the prevention of medication errors by clinical pharmacologist consultations in patients with cancer.

Methods

We assessed the effect of clinical pharmacologist consultation by the acceptance of interventions recommended due to dosage, frequency, duration of therapy errors and drug-drug interactions (DDIs). All medication errors detected by clinical pharmacologist were reported in the format of medical consultation. A documentation template was designed to collect the patient's data (sex, age, and diagnosis), prescriptions written, and drug-specific recommendations. For the descriptive analysis of medication errors, the unit of analysis was the number and percentage of errors.

Results

A total of 296 patients included in this study with a median age of 48.67±19.76 years of which 47.30% were females. 936 prescribing errors were detected and recommended for their correction. The specialist physicians accepted 897 of prescribed errors. DDIs that were detected in 66.22% of patients, were the most errors in this group of errors (47%). Improper dose (17.41%) wrong frequency (16.67%) and drug-food interaction (10.26%) were after that.

Conclusion

Pharmacological consultation in the hematology-oncology ward revealed many medication errors. The trust of physicians in the views of the clinical pharmacologist led to a large part of these errors being accepted and resolved.

Surveillance of antibiotic and analgesic use in the Oral Surgery Department of the University Dentistry Clinical Center of Kosovo

BACKGROUND

Because Kosovo has no reliable information on antimicrobial and analgesic use in dental practice, the survey reported here evaluated the antibiotic and analgesic prescriptions in the Oral Surgery Department of the University Dentistry Clinical Center of Kosovo (UDCCK).

METHODS

The data of 2,442 registered patients for a 1-year period were screened and analyzed concerning antibiotic and analgesic use as per standards of rational prescription.

RESULTS

Dentistry doctors prescribed antibiotics significantly more often than analgesics. Antibiotics were prescribed in 8.11% of all cases, while only 1.35% of total prescriptions were for analgesics. The total consumption of antibiotic drugs in the UDCCK was 4.53 Defined Daily Doses [DDD]/1,000 inhabitants/day, compared with only 0.216 DDD/1,000 inhabitants/day for analgesics. From a total number of 117 patients, 32 patients received combinations of two antibiotics.

CONCLUSION

Pharmacotherapy analysis showed that the prescription rates of antibiotics and analgesics in the UDCCK are not rational in terms of the qualitative aspects of treatment. For the qualitative improvement of prescription of these drug groups, we recommend the implementation of treatment guidelines following rational standards.

An analysis of the relative frequencies of reported adverse events associated with NSAID administration in dogs and cats in the United Kingdom

This study aimed to analyse UK pharmacovigilance data to quantify adverse events (AEs) associated with the non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) molecules found in veterinary medicines authorised for use in dogs and cats. It was hypothesised that the frequency of AEs would be lower when associated with cyclo-oxygenase-2 selective (coxib), compared to non-selective (non-coxib) NSAIDs. The UK Veterinary Medicines Directorate (VMD) supplied frequencies of AEs derived from Periodic Safety Update Reports subdivided by formulation and species for each NSAID molecule. Frequencies of AEs were similar between species. The five most reported AEs were emesis, death, anorexia, lethargy, and diarrhoea. Reported frequency of emesis, renal insufficiency and death was higher with injectable compared to oral NSAIDs (P = 0.043). Reported frequency of emesis, lethargy and death was higher with coxib, compared to non-coxib NSAIDs (P = 0.029). Median (range) interval since authorisation was shorter for coxibs at 5 (2.5-9) years compared to non-coxibs at 15 (12-25) years. A negative correlation between time elapsed since authorisation and the frequency of AEs was identified (rs = -0.11 to -0.94). Higher frequency of reported AEs with injectable NSAIDs may be related to perioperative administration. The AE frequency associated with coxib and non-coxib NSAIDs may be confounded by changes in reporting habits over time. This study highlights the value of interrogating passive surveillance data to identify low frequency AEs and the need to facilitate improvement in recording and collecting AEs in small animal practice.

Pharmacovigilance in oncology: evaluation of current practice and future perspectives

RATIONALE, AIMS AND OBJECTIVES

Pharmacovigilance (PV), or drug safety monitoring, aims to improve patient safety through the detection and management of drug-related adverse reactions. It is implemented both by spontaneous reporting of adverse drug reactions (ADRs) and by careful detection of signals suggestive of drug toxicity. PV is an important clinical topic in clinical practice and pharmacotherapy, assuring the maintenance of a safe risk/benefit ratio throughout the commercial life cycle of a drug.

METHODS

We conducted a structured literature search on PubMed, Scopus, Cinahl and the Cochrane Library. We also performed manual searches in international databases of ADR individual reports to outline a structured profile on the topic. Our goal was to review key elements that affect safety monitoring of cancer drugs and their appropriate use, highlighting the strengths and weaknesses of PV in oncology.

RESULTS

This paper provides an understanding of the methodologies used by PV in current clinical practice and particularly in cancer drug therapy; a focus upon reporting of ADRs by health professionals and patients; and a focus upon methods used by PV to detect new signals of risk/harm related to medicines utilization.

CONCLUSION

To our knowledge, few articles focus upon the importance of PV and post-marketing surveillance of cancer drug therapies. Structured management of spontaneous reports of ADRs and data collection is essential to monitoring the safe use of drugs in this field in which pharmacotherapy is affected by high incidence of drug-related complications and by a narrow benefit/risk ratio.

Relevance of pharmacoepidemiology to Nepal

Drug-related problems such as overuse of injectable drug products and antimicrobials, increased cost of drug therapy, polypharmacy, and adverse drug reactions (ADRs) are prevalent in the healthcare settings of Nepal. To date, no new drug development processes or clinical trials have been conducted in Nepal, despite the fact that studies of real life situations are an essential tool for monitoring medicine use. Pharmacoepidemiology (PE) is an important area that evaluates the effects of drug use in large populations. Data obtained from pharmacoepidemiological studies may highlight ways to reduce certain drug-related problems and provide reliable information on the safety profile of a drug. Moreover, clinicians and regulatory authorities may also use the data to make drug therapy decisions, drug regulation and policy development. Therefore, there is a great need to conduct appropriate pharmacoepidemiological studies that involve multiple regions and in various groups of the population of Nepal, to collect unbiased and reliable information on drug use.

Characteristics and apprehensions of clinical pharmacologists in Swedish healthcare--a questionnaire study

PURPOSE

To describe the discipline clinical pharmacology of today in the Swedish healthcare system from the performers' point of view.

METHODS

A questionnaire was administered in December 2012 to physicians working within the specialty clinical pharmacology in the Swedish healthcare system (7 sites; 1-26 physicians per site). The questionnaire included questions pertaining to the characteristics of the responder and statements to which the responder indicated his/her level of agreement using a score ranging from 1 (total disagreement) to 5 (total agreement).

RESULTS

A total of 61 completed questionnaires were returned (response rate: 97 %; 55 % male; 74 % specialists and/or consultants). In the preceding month, 79 % of the responders had performed educational activities, 74 % had functioned as an "expert", and 75 % had performed research. The academic merits of the responders were high, with 72 % having at least a PhD degree and 23 % being professors. Among those performing research, the focus of 83 % was related to the field of clinical pharmacology, with the main sub-areas being pharmacoepidemiology (59 %) and/or pharmacogenetics (41 %). Regarding the apprehension questions, the responders strongly agreed that the specialty clinical pharmacology meets a need in the healthcare system (4.5 ± 0.7), that they wanted to continue to work within the specialty (4.5 ± 0.7), that their personal professional prospects were good (3.9 ± 1.0), and that they would recommend a colleague to specialize within the field (3.9 ± 1.1). The responders from the largest and first established site (Karolinska University Hospital) agreed with these points to a significantly greater extent than responders from other sites.

CONCLUSIONS

The majority of the performers of clinical pharmacology in Swedish healthcare consider this specialty to be important to the medical community. By carrying out educational activities, providing expertise, and performing research, the performers seem to be content with their work and future prospects. Performers within the largest and oldest site in Sweden, generally held the most positive view of the specialty.