ABSTRACT
In the last 20 years, plant-based therapy had become the world's attention. Our country Indonesia is popular in itsmegabiodiversity, among which is Salacca zalacca Gaert. (Voss.), or salak. The fruit of this plant is generally utilizedas pickles, chips, etc. However, its benefits for health remain unexplored. Library searches using PubMed, GoogleScholar, Science Direct, and Google resulted that S. zalacca, which contains flavonoids, alkaloids, terpenoids, andsitosterols exerts various pharmacology activities, e.g., antioxidant, cholesterol reducer, antidiabetic, skin whitening,antihyperuricemia, antibacterial, immune system enhancer, cancer cell growth inhibitor, and adsorbent.
ABSTRACT
The pharmacy has an important social as well as a functional role within an integrated health care system. Service quality has been an important topic to both health care providers and marketers as well as the focus of much recent research. This study was aimed to measure the service quality of community pharmacy based on patient’s perceptions. A written survey was carried out among pharmacy costumers (n=500) in Bandung, Indonesia (in 5 community pharmacies). The survey method used questionnaire with Cross-Sectional descriptive study approaches and SERVQUAL model. The level of patient satisfaction was mapped by Cartesian diagram. Mapping attribute on Cartesian Diagram majority on quadrat B, means the patients who purchased the prescription was satisfied with the services provided. The results showed that patients who purchased their prescription at five of community pharmacies overall very satisfied with the services provided and no one really needs to be a priority to increase the satisfaction of patients with prescription treatments given.
ABSTRACT
Natural maltodextrin, due to their outstanding merits, have received more and more attention in the field of drug delivery systems. In particular, maltodextrin seem to be the most promising materials in the preparation of niosome carriers. This study aimed to optimize and characterize the formulation of natural maltodextrin-based niosome. The natural maltodextrin was made from cilembu sweet potato starch which used partial starch hydrolysis method by α-amylase enzyme. Proniosome and niosome formulations used three various concentration of surfactant (sorbitan monostearat) which about 5 mmol, 7.5 mmol, and 10 mmol for formula 1 (F1), formula 2 (F2), and Formula 3 (F3) respectively. In addition, physical and chemical characterizations had been done to characterize maltodextrin, proniosome, and niosome. The Dextrose Equivalent (DE) value of natural maltodextrin was 7.99+0.11. Furthermore, the vesicle size of proniosome was in the range of 5μ to 13μ. The entrapment percentages of piroxicam in niosome formulations were 72.5+1.1%,, 76+1.7 %, and 77.5+1.9 % for FI, F2 and F3 respectively. It can be concluded that the result provided an indication of natural maltodextrin from Cilembu sweet potato starch are potentialy carrier in the proniosome preparation which can be used for producing niosomes.