Medications Dispensed by Pharmacies for the Management of Common Cold in 2005

BACKGROUND: Upper respiratory infections (URIs) are the most common infections in developed countries and are the major reasons for the consumption of medicines including antibiotics. In Korea, antibiotics and glucocorticoids were dispensed by pharmacies without prescriptions before July 2000, when the dispensation of antibiotics without doctor's prescriptions was prohibited. The objective of this study is to investigate the rate of antibiotic dispensation by pharmacies for the treatment of common cold and to identify the dispensing pattern for URI management in 2005, i.e., 5 years after the establishment of the prohibition policy. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In August 2005, medical students visited 90 drugstores in three cities (Seoul, Chonan, and Chunchun) and received medications for the treatment of illnesses that simulate the common cold, i.e., rhinorrhea and nasal stuffiness that had lasted for one day and were not accompanied by fever. The components of the dispensed medicines were identified by pharmacists at a university hospital. RESULTS: All the components of the dispensed medicines were identifiable in 85 cases (94.4%), and the mean number of medicines was 1.36 (S.D.+/-0.724); no difference was observed among the three cities. The antibiotics ampicillin and chloramphenicol were identified in two pharmacies in Seoul and Chunchun, respectively. Glucocorticoids were not dispensed in any case, and a nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drug was dispensed in only one case. Compound medicines are increasingly used as cold remedies; the components of the most frequently dispensed medicine were acetaminophen, chlorpheniramine, and pseudoephedrine. Herbal medicines were also frequently included in cold remedies (38.9%); licorice (30%) and ginger (26%) were the two most frequently used medicinal herbs. CONCLUSION: There was a marked decrease in the dispensation of antimicrobials, glucocorticoids, and nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drugs without doctor's prescriptions. Chloramphenicol continued to be dispensed as a URI medication. Increased use of compound and herbal medicines as cold remedies suggests a need for the evaluation of the additional benefits of herbal medicines, their adverse effects, and the drug interactions between herbal and conventional medicines.

A Case Study of Meningococcal Vaccination At a University Hospital

Meningococcal infection is a life threatening disease that leaves serious sequelae in spite of appropriate treatment, thus vaccination for high risk groups are important for the prevention of meningococcal diseases. However, the vaccine for Neisseria meningitidis has not been available in Korea until we introduced bivalent (serogroup A and C) polysaccharide vaccine for the first time for relief works in our university hospital. The vaccine was administered from January 2005 to March 2007 to 317 persons. Of the groups administered, the largest group among them were 133 (133/317, 42%) students who planned to study abroad and needed the vaccination for secure entrance to school dormitories. This group was followed by health care workers, travellers to the regions of the world with high risks of meningococcal diseases, and splenectomised patients. To rationalize the domestic use of meningococcal vaccine, the availability of vaccines first needs to be simplified by introducing them to the domestic market; for this to be possible, the approval system for vaccines should be reformed and epidemiogical studies need to be carried out.

Medications Dispensed by Pharmacies for the Management of Common Cold in 2005

BACKGROUND: Upper respiratory infections (URIs) are the most common infections in developed countries and are the major reasons for the consumption of medicines including antibiotics. In Korea, antibiotics and glucocorticoids were dispensed by pharmacies without prescriptions before July 2000, when the dispensation of antibiotics without doctor's prescriptions was prohibited. The objective of this study is to investigate the rate of antibiotic dispensation by pharmacies for the treatment of common cold and to identify the dispensing pattern for URI management in 2005, i.e., 5 years after the establishment of the prohibition policy. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In August 2005, medical students visited 90 drugstores in three cities (Seoul, Chonan, and Chunchun) and received medications for the treatment of illnesses that simulate the common cold, i.e., rhinorrhea and nasal stuffiness that had lasted for one day and were not accompanied by fever. The components of the dispensed medicines were identified by pharmacists at a university hospital. RESULTS: All the components of the dispensed medicines were identifiable in 85 cases (94.4%), and the mean number of medicines was 1.36 (S.D.+/-0.724); no difference was observed among the three cities. The antibiotics ampicillin and chloramphenicol were identified in two pharmacies in Seoul and Chunchun, respectively. Glucocorticoids were not dispensed in any case, and a nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drug was dispensed in only one case. Compound medicines are increasingly used as cold remedies; the components of the most frequently dispensed medicine were acetaminophen, chlorpheniramine, and pseudoephedrine. Herbal medicines were also frequently included in cold remedies (38.9%); licorice (30%) and ginger (26%) were the two most frequently used medicinal herbs. CONCLUSION: There was a marked decrease in the dispensation of antimicrobials, glucocorticoids, and nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drugs without doctor's prescriptions. Chloramphenicol continued to be dispensed as a URI medication. Increased use of compound and herbal medicines as cold remedies suggests a need for the evaluation of the additional benefits of herbal medicines, their adverse effects, and the drug interactions between herbal and conventional medicines.

A Case Study of Meningococcal Vaccination At a University Hospital

Meningococcal infection is a life threatening disease that leaves serious sequelae in spite of appropriate treatment, thus vaccination for high risk groups are important for the prevention of meningococcal diseases. However, the vaccine for Neisseria meningitidis has not been available in Korea until we introduced bivalent (serogroup A and C) polysaccharide vaccine for the first time for relief works in our university hospital. The vaccine was administered from January 2005 to March 2007 to 317 persons. Of the groups administered, the largest group among them were 133 (133/317, 42%) students who planned to study abroad and needed the vaccination for secure entrance to school dormitories. This group was followed by health care workers, travellers to the regions of the world with high risks of meningococcal diseases, and splenectomised patients. To rationalize the domestic use of meningococcal vaccine, the availability of vaccines first needs to be simplified by introducing them to the domestic market; for this to be possible, the approval system for vaccines should be reformed and epidemiogical studies need to be carried out.