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Biomedical subjects

Albert Figueras

Publications and source records attributed to Albert Figueras.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2006

Long-term effects of an educational intervention on self-medication and appropriate drug use in single-sex secondary public schools, Quito, Ecuador.

WHAT IS ALREADY KNOWN ABOUT THIS SUBJECT: *Self-medication is extensively practised in both developed and less-developed countries, sometimes inappropriately. *Educational intervention in secondary schools has been proven to be useful. *Most educational interventions in adolescent populations have focused on the reduction of addictive substance abuse. WHAT THIS STUDY ADDS: *Educational intervention can improve knowledge about self-medication and reduce misconceptions about diarrhoea, common cold and vitamins in an adolescent population. *A specific lecture followed by small working-group seminars produces better results than a general lecture alone in terms of 'knowledge' and 'attitude'. *The positive effects of the intervention are detectable even 1 year later. Yearly reinforcing interventions while in secondary school would allow long-lasting effects. AIM: Improving knowledge about rational drug use at an early age may be a good way to increase the population's awareness of health, medicines and self-medication. We set out to evaluate the short- and long-term effects of an educational intervention to promote rational drug use and self-medication in secondary school students. METHODS: A non-randomized, controlled clinical trial. The participants were 367 female students (10-13 years old) from two secondary public schools of the metropolitan district of Quito (Ecuador). The educational campaign had two components [a specific lecture (intervention and control schools) and subsequent small working group seminars (intervention school)] providing short and clear messages of five topics related to rational drug use. The main outcome measures were an increase in 'knowledge' short term (1 month) and long term (up to 1 year) after intervention and the relative risk (RR) reduction in misconceptions or wrong ideas about medicine use. RESULTS: The intervention group showed a significant increase in knowledge both short and long term and in comparison with the control group, mainly regarding oral rehydration salts preparation (+59.4%; P < 0.001), lack of multivitamin energizer action (+57.4%; P < 0.001), healthy growth effects (+53.3%; P < 0.001) and the perception that medicines' promotional activities do not teach how to take care of health (+54.0%; P < 0.001). A RR reduction in misconceptions about drugs was found short term and long term. The intervention group was less predisposed to consume antidiarrhoeals [RR = 0.75, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.62, 0.92], cough suppressants (0.44, 95% CI 0.35, 0.55) and other medicines for the common cold (0.56, 95% CI 0.45, 0.70). Misconceptions concerning the benefits of multivitamin preparations were reduced in 73%; additionally, the intervention group showed a decrease in their consumption (43.9% basal; 25.3% short term and 25.6% long term; P < 0.001). CONCLUSION: It is possible to achieve a favourable modification of attitudes to appropriate use of medicines in a teenage population and this modification lasts at least 1 year. Continuous reinforcing interventions would allow better and long-lasting effects and could help to fill the gap in health education of the general population.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2006

The internet as a tool in clinical pharmacology.

The invention of the internet and the world-wide web was a landmark that has affected many aspects of everyday life, but is so recent and dynamic that many of its potential uses are still being explored. Aside from its purely commercial use as a virtual pharmacy (e-commerce), the internet is useful in at least three aspects related to clinical pharmacology: communication, training and research. In this paper we briefly review several internet applications related to clinical pharmacology and describe, as an example, the logistics of a multicentre research collaboration related to the promotion of rational drug use in the prevention of postpartum haemorrhage.

Biomedical Research↗
PubMed2005

Scientific drug information in newspapers: sensationalism and low quality. The example of therapeutic use of cannabinoids.

OBJECTIVE: We aimed to analyse the quality of newspaper articles (NAs) concerning the therapeutic use of cannabis published in Spanish newspapers. METHODS: A preliminary questionnaire of the Index of Scientific Quality was used [scores ranged from 0 (no misleading) to 14 (misinformation in each item)]. RESULTS: Of the 29 NAs analysed, 16 (55.2%) were scored as 4 or lower, and 6 (20.7%) scored 7 or higher. Up to 23 NAs (79.3%) did not manage the knowledge related to cannabinoids; 20 (69%) gave a sensationalist message; 11 (37.9%) were able to wrongly influence clinical decision taking; and 8 (27.6%) misled medical concepts. CONCLUSION: The leading medical journals could play an especially relevant role while preparing their press releases if they specify study limitations and context.

Biomedical Research↗
PubMed2005

Treatment of type 2 diabetes in primary health care: a drug utilization study.

BACKGROUND: Metabolic control in type 2 diabetes depends on patient adherence to therapy. Quantitative consumption data do not supply information regarding the appropriate use of medicine. Drug utilization studies are useful to identify treatment adherence problems and, thus, design interventions to improve drug use. OBJECTIVE: To describe the treatment and outcome in terms of degree of metabolic control in these patients, assess the agreement between the doses of antidiabetic drugs reported by the patient and those written in the medical record, and describe the drug utilization characteristics in relation to the standards of care. METHODS: This drug utilization study was conducted in primary care centers in Barcelona, Spain. Consecutive patients with type 2 diabetes attending a follow-up visit were interviewed regarding lifestyle, diet, glycosylated hemoglobin level, and treatment. Concordance between the information obtained through medical records and patient interviews was analyzed. RESULTS: Metabolic control was deficient in 73 (40%), acceptable in 50 (28%), and good in 58 (32%) of the 181 patients with available information. For 38 (19%) patients, there was disagreement between the dose of the antidiabetic drug reported by the patient and that written in the medical record. For 83 (41%) patients, the treatment in the medical history was in agreement with published standards. CONCLUSIONS: Identification of disagreement between standards of care and clinical practice in type 2 diabetes management is the basis to improve drug utilization and achieve better metabolic control in these patients.

Aged↗
PubMed2005

Assessment of risks related to medicine dispensing by nonprofessionals in Colombia: clinical case simulations.

BACKGROUND: Appropriate dispensing is one of the steps for rational drug use, so it is generally advised that the dispenser should have relevant and updated knowledge, skills, and attitudes. OBJECTIVE: To assess pharmacies and nonprofessional employees' (NEs) skills and knowledge, as well as their response to several specific case simulations in Bogota, Colombia. METHODS: A descriptive cross-sectional study was performed on a random sample of 371 pharmacies in Bogota. Information from each pharmacy was obtained using 2 approaches: (1) direct interview to collect data on organizational aspects of the store and characteristics of NEs, and (2) simulation (both by direct interview and by telephone) to assess dispensing responses in 6 simulated clinical cases. RESULTS: More than half of the simulated clinical situations resulted in inappropriate dispensing (direct simulations 57%; telephone simulations 55%). The proportion of correct answers to theoretical questions regarding a specific therapeutic problem during interviews was higher than the response when a simulation presented that same case and a dispensing act was expected. The educational background of the NEs included in the study points to a specific problem: two-thirds of the individuals selling medicines had completed only secondary-level education and only 2% of the sample had a pharmacist as technical director. Continuing education courses were either directly organized by drug manufacturers (one-third of the courses attended by pharmacists) or sponsored by them (more than an additional one-third). CONCLUSIONS: NEs should be considered part of the therapeutic chain and, if appropriately updated or instructed, could play a very important role in the always difficult promotion of rational drug use. Public health institutions and universities should be more actively involved in the provision of independent, unbiased, and essential information on common therapeutic problems, safety concerns, and new drug prescription restrictions.

Adult↗
PubMed2005

From suspicion to action: the chemical conjunctivitis and silver nitrate connexion example in Brazilian hospitals.

BACKGROUND: During the 20th century, silver nitrate (SN) eye drops instillation to newborns had been the best prophylaxis against ophthalmia neonatorum (ON) caused by Neisseria gonorrheae, the most frequent cause of ocular infections leading to blindness. At present, this treatment has been questioned because there is a growing prevalence of other pathogens such as Chlamydia trachomatis, and SN is associated with chemical conjunctivitis (ChC). In addition, SN could present some conservation problems in tropical climates. Among other alternative drugs, 2.5% povidone-iodine has a proven efficacy, not only against Neisseria, but also against Chlamydia, has no conservation problems, has not been associated with ChC and is cheap. METHODS: The recently created Setor de Farmacovigilãncia (SF) of the São Paulo State in Brazil has created a pharmacovigilance network of 11 big public hospitals. During a periodical signal searching process, the SF found a cluster of 33 ChC reports from one of the network hospitals. RESULTS: The problem was discussed with the remaining participant hospitals and this signal was used as a way to strengthen the network. Thirteen months later, 622 ChC reports were received from six hospitals. DISCUSSION: Thus, this well-known side-effect in the literature was highlighted as a 'real' problem in Brazil, and some participant hospitals began a discussion period together with the delivery and newborn care professionals in order to switch SN by povidone-iodine. This is an example of both, how a simple pharmacovigilance exercise could improve the implication of health professionals with their own therapeutic problems and how a pharmacovigilance network could be strengthened.

Anti-Infective Agents, Local↗
PubMed2005

Adverse drug reactions in an elderly hospitalised population: inappropriate prescription is a leading cause.

OBJECTIVE: Adverse drug reactions (ADRs) represent a major public health problem in the aged. In order to better evaluate this problem in Brazil, this study was designed to assess the prevalence of ADRs in an elderly hospitalised population, identify the most common ADRs and the principal medications involved, evaluate the appropriateness of use of these drugs in elderly people and determine the risk factors implicated in the appearance of such ADRs. METHODS: The study population was comprised of 186 elderly patients (> or =60 years of age) admitted to the internal medicine service of a teaching hospital. The patients were assessed by a single observer using an intensive drug surveillance method to identify and report ADRs. The degree of probability for each adverse reaction was determined using the Naranjo algorithm. RESULTS: The mean (+/- SD) age of the patients studied was 73.6 +/- 9.1 years. Up to 115 patients (61.8%) of the study population presented at least one ADR. A total of 199 ADRs were found, at an average of 1.7 per patient. The ADRs appeared during hospitalisation in 46.2% of the study population, were present at the time of the admission but did not cause hospitalisation in 17.2% of patients, and were the cause of admission in 11.3% of patients. The most frequent ADR that caused hospitalisation was digitalis toxicity (22.7% of such ADRs). Hypokalaemia as a result of diuretics was the most prevalent ADR both during hospitalisation (11.8%) and at the time of admission without being the cause (12.1%). Captopril was the most frequently prescribed drug (138 prescriptions), and led to an ADR in 18.1% of patients who received the drug. Almost a quarter of the patients presenting an ADR were prescribed drugs considered inappropriate for the elderly. By means of a multiple logistic regression model, the following were considered to be significant risk factors for the appearance of ADRs: number of diagnoses (odds ratio [OR] 1.40; 95% CI 1.06, 1.86), number of drugs (OR 1.07; 95% CI 1.01, 1.13) and use of drug that is inappropriate for the elderly (OR 2.32; 95% CI 1.17, 4.59). DISCUSSION: The main contribution of the present study was identification of use of drugs that are considered inappropriate for elderly populations as a major risk factor for presenting an ADR. This finding is useful for continuous education programmes, therapeutic committees and policy makers, because adverse effects complicate the course of diseases in aged patients, cause hospitalisation and/or require the prescription of additional drugs. In addition to contributing to a reduction in healthcare costs, continuous efforts to promote rational drug use could also benefit elderly patients by preventing some avoidable drug toxicity. CONCLUSION: A significant prevalence of ADRs was found among hospitalised elderly people. The risk factors associated with ADRs in this population included use of drugs considered to be inappropriate for that population, number of previous diagnoses and number of administered drugs. More appropriate drug prescription could avoid part of this burden of disease by minimising preventable ADRs.

Adverse Drug Reaction Reporting Systems↗
PubMed2003

Stimulating adverse drug reaction reporting: effect of a drug safety bulletin and of including yellow cards in prescription pads.

BACKGROUND: The effectiveness of voluntary reporting systems in pharmacovigilance highly depends on the number of assembled reports. AIM: The aim of this study was to measure the effect of the periodical distribution of a bulletin on drug safety issues and of including yellow cards in prescription pads on the rate of adverse drug reaction (ADR) reporting. STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS: The Catalan Centre of Pharmacovigilance began its activities at the end of 1982. Since 1985, an ADR bulletin (ADRB) has been mailed approximately quarterly to all physicians in its catchment area, with one yellow card enclosed. Additionally, from 1991-1994, a yellow card was included in the prescription pads of the Catalan Health Service. Time series methodology, with adjustment of the monthly number of reports to an Auto-Regressive Integrated Moving Average (ARIMA) model, was used to evaluate the effect of these two measures. RESULTS: From January 1983-October 1995, 6240 spontaneous ADR reports were received, and 41 issues of the ADRB were sent out. Initially, the mean monthly spontaneous ADR reporting rate was 34.4 (SD = 14.1; n = 106 months). After the inclusion of yellow cards in prescription pads, the mean monthly spontaneous ADR reporting rate increased to 53.9 (SD = 14.4; n = 48 months). According to an ARIMA model, when a bulletin was send out (MONTH1), a mean increase of 9.4 reports was produced in that month, plus 12.3 additional reports in the following month (MONTH2), and 6.3 in the second month after sending the ADRB (MONTH3). A yellow card in the prescription pads elicits a monthly mean increase of 19.8 in the number of reports. CONCLUSIONS: The present study suggests that ADRBs elicit a temporal increase of the ADR reporting rate. Including a yellow card in prescription pads was followed by an even greater increase in the reporting rate, possibly because it guarantees that yellow cards are available at the workplace.

Adverse Drug Reaction Reporting Systems↗
PubMed2002

Therapeutic ineffectiveness: heads or tails?

Reporting of therapeutic ineffectiveness through adverse drug reaction spontaneous reporting systems has been proposed by some authors. In the WHO Adverse Reactions Terminology (WHO-ART) and Medical Dictionary for Regulatory Activities (MedDRA) terminology, the term therapeutic ineffectiveness includes drug interactions, resistance, tolerance and tachyphylaxis, as well as pharmaceutical defects such as substandard, adulterated, and counterfeit drugs. Under certain circumstances, reporting therapeutic ineffectiveness may contribute to identifying pharmaceutical defects. However, the best approach to avoid their occurrence would be implementing good manufacturing practices and strengthening quality control activities. This would prevent the misuse of spontaneous reporting of adverse drug reactions (e.g. when reporting of therapeutic ineffectiveness is 'suggested' by interested parties, especially when a generic product has been substituted for a branded original product).

Adverse Drug Reaction Reporting Systems↗
PubMed2002

Regulatory decisions in a globalised world: the domino effect of phenylpropanolamine withdrawal in Latin America.

Rapid drug regulatory decisions regarding phenylpropanolamine (PPA)-containing common cold remedies and diet pills were taken in some Latin American countries following a US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) decision in the US. This situation is described as one that illustrates the important changes that regulatory decisions are experiencing as a consequence of globalisation. The evidence for the efficacy of PPA as a nasal decongestant and as an appetite-suppressant is very limited, at least by modern standards. Its potential to increase blood pressure and induce haemorrhagic stroke was described soon after its marketing. Although this poor benefit/risk ratio had been known for more than 20 years, regulatory action was taken in Latin America only after the US FDA withdrew the drug in the US on the basis of the results of a case-control study which added limited new evidence to the already known risk of stroke, but which, on the other hand, had attracted much attention from the media.

Appetite Depressants↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Health needs, drug registration and control in less developed countries--the Peruvian case.

A number of factors influence how medicines are used in each community, but drug registration is the initial and usually necessary step. In the course of an external advisory consultation, the list of approved medicines in Peru in 1998 was examined. Of 1672 newly approved forms, 119 were of 49 new chemical entities. Sildenafil, meloxicam, nimesulide, candesartan, irebesartan, naratriptan, trovafloxacin and grepafloxacin were among them. Several aspects about the new global drug situation and 'real' health needs versus 'induced' health needs are discussed from this example.

Developing Countries↗