Medication misuse results in considerable problems for both patient and society. It is a complex problem with many contributing factors, including timely access to product information.
To investigate the value of 3-dimensional (3D) visualization paired with video conferencing as a tool for pharmaceutical advice over distance in terms of accessibility and ease of use for the advice seeker.
We created a Web-based communication service called AssistancePlus that allows an advisor to demonstrate the physical handling of a complex pharmaceutical product to an advice seeker with the aid of 3D visualization and audio/video conferencing. AssistancePlus was tested in 2 separate user studies performed in a usability lab, under realistic settings and emulating a real usage situation. In the first study, 10 pharmacy students were assisted by 2 advisors from the Swedish National Co-operation of Pharmacies' call centre on the use of an asthma inhaler. The student-advisor interview sessions were filmed on video to qualitatively explore their experience of giving and receiving advice with the aid of 3D visualization. In the second study, 3 advisors from the same call centre instructed 23 participants recruited from the general public on the use of 2 products: (1) an insulin injection pen, and (2) a growth hormone injection syringe. First, participants received advice on one product in an audio-recorded telephone call and for the other product in a video-recorded AssistancePlus session (product order balanced). In conjunction with the AssistancePlus session, participants answered a questionnaire regarding accessibility, perceived expressiveness, and general usefulness of 3D visualization for advice-giving over distance compared with the telephone and were given a short interview focusing on their experience of the 3D features.
In both studies, participants found the AssistancePlus service helpful in providing clear and exact instructions. In the second study, directly comparing AssistancePlus and the telephone, AssistancePlus was judged positively for ease of communication (P = .001), personal contact (P = .001), explanatory power (P
Notes
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Cites: Int J Med Inform. 2005 Jan;74(1):21-3015626633
The effect of a selective 5-HT(1A) antagonist, 4-(2'-methoxy-)phenyl-1-[2'-(N-2"-pyridinyl)-p-iodobenzamino-]ethyl-piperazine (p-MPPI), on acute ethanol-induced hypothermia, sleep and suppression of acoustic startle reflex in C3H/He mice and Wistar rats was studied. Administration of p-MPPI at the doses of 0.4, 0.7 and 1.0 mg/kg reduced in a dose-dependent manner the ethanol-induced hypothermia and the sleep time and attenuated the ethanol-induced decrease of acoustic startle reflex magnitude in mice. Similar p-MPPI (0.4 mg/kg) effects on ethanol-induced sleep and hypothermia were obtained in rats. It was concluded that 5-HT(1A) receptors were involved in the mechanisms of the ethanol-induced hypothermia and sleep, and that 5-HT(1A) antagonist increased acute ethanol tolerance.
A rapid increase in fatal accidental dextropropoxyphene poisonings which is proportional to the increased use of the drug is reported. In 30 accidental poisonings dextropropoxyphene was responsible for 50% of the cases, and is the most common accidental medical poisoning at the present time. This is probably due to the unappreciated narrow margin between therapeutic and fatal dose and the simultaneous intake of alcohol which increases the resorbtion speed from the gastro-intestinal tract. In Denmark a slow-release preparation is frequently used. which is especially dangerous because of repeated dosage by the patient attempting to induce the therapeutic effect more quickly.
Accumulation of cadmium, zinc, and copper in maternal blood and developmental placental tissue: differences between Finland, Estonia, and St. Petersburg.
Cadmium, zinc, and copper from placental tissue and blood samples at the first trimester (n = 64) and at term (n = 152) were analyzed; the welfare of newborns and placental 7-ethoxycoumarin O-deethylase (ECOD) activities in vitro were determined. The study material was collected from Finland, Estonia, and Russia. The results demonstrate that Cd starts to accumulate in the placenta during the first trimester and that Zn and Cu contents were significantly higher at the first trimester than at term. Among nonsmokers a negative correlation was found between placental Cu content and birth weight of neonates. Among smokers a positive correlation between placental Zn content and birth weight and ECOD activity was found. The birth weights correlated inversely with the length of time the mothers smoked. The highest Cd concentrations were detected in the samples collected from St. Petersburg. The data demonstrate an inverse accumulation of Zn and Cd throughout the pregnancy in the placenta and maternal blood samples. Zn may act as a positive marker or even an enzymatic enhancement for the human placental vital functions. Smoking, parity, age, and especially the place of residence affect the Cd, Zn, and Cu contents and ratios in placenta and mother's blood.
We investigated whether prior use of calcium antagonists in 80 (16.8%) out of 477 patients (64% males) admitted with acute myocardial infarction (MI) had any impact on in-hospital mortality. Patients using calcium antagonists were slightly older (74 years vs. 72 years, 2P = 0.039) than those not taking them and fewer were male patients. Previous MI, diabetes mellitus, and prior use of aspirin, beta-blockers, and long-acting nitrates were more frequent in patients on calcium antagonists. In contrast, fewer patients on calcium antagonists prior to symptoms received thrombolytic treatment (21.3% vs. 34.8%, 2P = 0.018). The study had an observational exposed/nonexposed design, and we looked for both crude and adjusted effects. Of the 83 patients (17.4%) who died during hospitalization, 18 patients were in the calcium antagonist group (22.5%). The odds ratio (OR) for these patients to die in the hospital was 1.48 and the 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.78-2.78; 2P = 0.19. When adjusting for confounders (gender, age, smoking habit, previous MI, and diabetes mellitus, as well as prior use of aspirin, beta-blockers, long-acting nitrates, and thrombolytic treatment at entry) OR was 1.08 and 95% CI 0.57-2.05; 2P = 0.85. Thus, we found no excess in-hospital mortality in patients with acute MI using calcium antagonists prior to the onset of symptoms.
To investigate the extent to which clinicians avoid well-established drug-drug interactions that cause statin-induced myopathy. We hypothesised that clinicians would avoid combining erythromycin or verapamil/diltiazem respectively with atorvastatin or simvastatin. In patients with statin-fibrate combination therapy, we hypothesised that gemfibrozil was avoided to the preference of bezafibrate or fenofibrate. When combined with verapamil/diltiazem or fibrates, we hypothesized that the dispensed doses of atorvastatin/simvastatin would be decreased.
Cross-sectional analysis of nationwide dispensing data. Odds ratios of interacting erythromycin, verapamil/diltiazem versus respective prevalence of comparator drugs doxycycline, amlodipine/felodipine in patients co-dispensed interacting statins simvastatin/atorvastatin versus patients unexposed (pravastatin/fluvastatin/rosuvastatin) was calculated. For fibrates, OR of gemfibrozil versus fenofibrate/bezafibrate in patients co-dispensed any statin was assessed.
OR of interacting erythromycin versus comparator doxycycline did not differ between patients on interacting and comparator statins either in patients dispensed high or low statin doses (adjusted OR 0.87; 95% CI 0.60-1.25 and 0.92; 95% CI 0.69-1.23). Interacting statins were less common among patients dispensed verapamil/diltiazem as compared to patients on amlodipine/felodipine (OR high dose 0.62; CI 0.56-0.68 and low dose 0.63; CI 0.58-0.68). Patients on any statin were to a lesser extent dispensed gemfibrozil compared to patients not dispensed a statin (OR high dose 0.65; CI 0.55-0.76 and low dose 0.70; CI 0.63-0.78). Mean DDD (SD) for any statin was substantially higher in patients co-dispensed gemfibrozil 178 (149) compared to patients on statin monotherapy 127 (93), (p
To investigate the extent to which clinicians avoid well-established drug-drug interactions associated with warfarin. We hypothesised that clinicians would avoid combining non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), tramadol and sulfamethoxazole with warfarin.
A cross-sectional analysis of nationwide dispensing data was performed in Swedish individuals 18 years or older (n?=? 7,563,649). Odds ratios of interacting NSAIDs, tramadol and sulfamethoxazole versus respective prevalence of comparator drugs codeine, and ciprofloxacin in patients co-dispensed interacting warfarin versus patients unexposed was calculated.
The odds of receiving an interacting NSAID versus the comparator codeine was markedly lower in patients with warfarin than in the remaining population (adjusted OR 0.21; 95% CI 0.20 - 0.22). Also, the interacting drugs tramadol and sulfamethoxazole were less common among patients dispensed warfarin as compared to the remaining population, although the decrease was much more modest (adjusted OR 0.83; CI 0.80-0.87 and 0.81; CI 0.73 - 0.90).
In conclusion, Swedish doctors in the vast majority of cases refrain from prescribing NSAIDs to patients already on warfarin. Tramadol and sulfamethoxazole are however rarely avoided.
