[Audits of good practice: implantable medical devices are also concerned]. / Audits de bon usage : les dispositifs médicaux implantables sont aussi concernés.

INTRODUCTION: Within the framework of a good practices agreement, French hospitals must perform clinical audits of costly molecules and implantable medical devices (IMD) to justify their medical costs. We present two examples of clinical audits of IMD: hip arthroplasties and cardiac stimulators. PATIENTS AND METHODS: The clinical audits were managed by the pharmacy with the support of the medical teams. Retrospective evaluation of patient files was performed by a pharmaceutical team using evaluation grids developed from official references from the French National Authority for Health and French National Health Insurance. RESULTS: The audit of hip arthroplasty procedures, including a retrospective and prospective study, showed that 95.4% and 96.9% of the surgical procedures followed guidelines. The audit of cardiac stimulators showed 100% agreement with guidelines. The audit of traceability showed that 97% of the files were complete. DISCUSSION: These audits show that the cost increases of the IMD are linked to following guidelines. It is important for these audits of pertinent use to be performed by both physicians and pharmacists. CONCLUSION: There is very little information in the literature or from authorities to help implement these audits. It would be interesting to propose common prospective and retrospective methods to evaluate the pertinent use of IMD.

[Severe toxicity following capecitabine administration because of dihydropyrimidine deshydrogenase (DPD) deficiency]. / Toxicité sévère à la capécitabine liée à un déficit enzymatique en dihydropyrimidine déshydrogénase (DPD).

Capecitabine is an anticancer agent, prodrug of 5 fluorouracil (5-FU) administered orally and with a narrow therapeutic index. In gastrointestinal cancer, capecitabine is indicated for the treatment of colorectal cancer and metastatic unresectable gastric cancer. The 5-FU is active by incorporation in the biosynthesis of nucleic acids. Inhibition of endogenous synthesis of thymidine is the main way of toxicity of 5-FU. 5-FU is metabolised by the dihydopyrimydine dehydrogenase (DPD). Patients with a DPD deficiency can experience severe toxicity of 5-FU. We report the case of a patient who presented signs of major toxicity justifying hospitalization in intensive care unit 11 days after capecitabine initiation. Investigations showed that he had a DPD deficiency. This case leads to explain the different biological ways to identify patients at risk of developing severe toxicity following capecitabine administration because of DPD deficiency. Is it possible to make a systematic screening before initiation of treatment with 5-FU or prodrug of 5-FU?

[Economic impact of pharmacist's interventions: illustration in a rheumatology ward]. / Impact économique des interventions pharmaceutiques: quelle problématique? Illustration en Service de Rhumatologie.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Drug-related problems represent a major problem for public health. Beyond the health consequences, we have to take into account the cost of these events. Clinical pharmacy services represent a way to tackle this problem. The objective of this study was to perform a cost minimization study on clinical Pharmacist intervention (CPI) in a Rheumatology ward from a General hospital. METHODS: During 16 months, CPIs developed in this unit were codified through an instrument proposed by the French Society of Clinica Pharmacy, and avoided costs on Drug acquisition, Medica Devices and working time of nurses were estimated. RESULTS: 610 pharmaceutical interventions were listed during 64 weeks. Among these interventions, 155 resulted in directs savings. 5,940 euro were saved over the period of data collection for an investment of 10,560 euro for pharmacist time. 90% of avoided costs were in these four categories: intravenous to oral administration conversion (44%); overdose (21%); drugs used without any indication (17%) and prescription duration too long (11%). CONCLUSIONS: The mode is based on the rate of acceptance by the physicians of pharmacist recommendations and the impact time (average length of stay). CPI prevents unnecessary costs but should be followed by other partnerships pharmacy-care units to generate benefits in the current economic context.