Risk Of Therapeutic Failure Research Articles

Drug-related hospitalization at a tertiary teaching center in Lebanon: incidence, associations, and relation to self-medicating behavior.

In Lebanon there is very limited restriction on drug use. Accordingly, self-medication is highly prevalent. This study examined the influence of these factors on the development of drug-related illnesses that lead to hospitalization. Patients admitted to the medical and pediatric wards of a tertiary teaching center in Beirut, Lebanon, over a period of 6 months were interviewed and their charts were reviewed. Admissions attributable to adverse drug reactions or therapeutic failures were identified and characterized with respect to demographic factors, medical history, drug intake, and self-medicating behavior. The influence of these variables on the development of drug-related illnesses was examined by logistic regression. Of 1745 adults and 457 children, there were 177 (10.2%) and 36 (7.9%) drug-related illnesses, respectively. Adverse drug reactions accounted for 7.0% and 5.7% and therapeutic failures for 3.2% and 2.2% of adult and pediatric admissions, respectively. Self-medication was commonly practiced (52.6% of adults and 41.6% of children). Logistic regression analysis revealed that female sex increased the risk of adverse drug reaction in adults, whereas self-medication decreased the risk. In children, the risk of adverse drug reaction was increased in lower socioeconomic groups, whereas the risk of therapeutic failure was increased by a positive history of atopy or drug reaction. These results provide the first detailed analysis of the problem of drug-related illnesses in a developing country and identify a number of related or risk factors. Despite the lack of regulation of drug dispensing and the unchecked access to drugs in Lebanon, the incidence of drug-related illnesses is not different from that in Western nations. This finding may have relevance to policies of drug regulation in other countries.

Sequential Antibiotic Therapy: Effective Cost Management and Patient Care

The escalating costs associated with antimicrobial chemotherapy have become of increasing concern to physicians, pharmacists and patients alike. A number of strategies have been developed to address this problem. This article focuses specifically on sequential antibiotic therapy (sat), which is the strategy of converting patients from intravenous to oral medication regardless of whether the same or a different class of drug is used. Advantages of sat include economic benefits, patient benefits and benefits to the health care provider. Potential disadvantages are cost to the consumer and the risk of therapeutic failure. A critical review of the published literature shows that evidence from randomized controlled trials supports the role of sat. However, it is also clear that further studies are necessary to determine the optimal time for intravenous to oral changeover and to identify the variables that may interfere with the use of oral drugs. Procedures necessary for the implementation of a sat program in the hospital setting are also discussed.

Treatment of Venous Thromboembolism in Patients with Congenital Deficiency of Antithrombin III

The treatment course of all thromboembolic events in the patients with congenital deficiency of antithrombin III (AT III) in the national Swedish register was reviewed in order to assess the appropriate medical therapy in this situation. The medical treatment of 70 events of venous thromboembolism was evaluated. There were eight cases with signs of clinical progression. The risk of therapeutic failure with heparin could be as low as 1.5% or as high as 9.2%. It would not be cost-effective to substitute with concentrates of AT III in every case with congenital deficiency thereof in connection with acute venous thromboembolism. "Heparin resistance" does not seem to be a problem in the vast majority of these patients.