drug prescription errors are a common cause of adverse incidents and may lead to adverse outcomes, sometimes in subtle ways, being compounded by circumstances or further errors. therefore, it is important that veterinarians issue the correct drug at the correct dose. using two or more prescribed drugs may lead to drug interactions. some drug interactions are very harmful and may have potential ...

UNLABELLED OxyContin (Purdue Pharma L.P., Stamford, Conn) was approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 1995 as a sustained-release preparation of oxycodone hydrochloride and was thought to have much lower abuse potential than immediate-release oxycodone because of its slow-release properties. However, beginning in 2000, widespread reports of OxyContin abuse surfaced. In response, P...

Increased abuse and diversion of prescription opioids has been a consequence of the increased availability of opioids to address the widespread problem of undertreated pain. Opioid risk management refers to the effort to minimize harms associated with opioid therapy while maintaining appropriate access to therapy. Management of these linked public health issues requires a coordinated and balanc...

OBJECTIVES "Doctor shopping" as a means of prescription opioid diversion is examined. The number and percentage of prescriptions and morphine-equivalent milligrams diverted in this manner are estimated by state and molecule for the period 2008-2012. METHODS Eleven billion prescriptions with unique patient, doctor, and pharmacy identifiers were used to construct diversion "events" that involve...

background: direct thrombin inhibitors and factor xa inhibitors are gaining popularity as alternatives to warfarin for patients requiring anticoagulation. toxicity due to these medications is difficult to manage because overdose experience is very limited and there is no clear guidance on when or whether to use antidote in this setting. case presentation: a 50-year-old man with normal renal fun...

PURPOSE Integrate statewide rankings of abuse across different drugs and/or signal detection systems to summarize prescription drug abuse in each state in 2007. METHODS Four signal detection systems (Opioid Treatment Programs, Key Informants, Drug Diversion, and Poison Centers) that covered heterogeneous populations collected data on the abuse of nine opioids: hydrocodone, immediate-release o...

Ketamine is a Schedule III controlled substance and is available in powder and tablet forms as well as an injectable formulation. It is difficult to manufacture and most users acquire it through diversion of the prescription product or theft from veterinary supplies. It is usually inhaled, although it can also be injected. Ketamine users will often take several sequential doses of the drug in o...

OBJECTIVE This study estimated prevalences and correlates of stimulant diversion in the United States and examined relationships between diversion and measures of abuse or dependence. METHODS We conducted descriptive and multivariate analysis of data from the National Survey on Drug Use and Health. Key measures were nonmedical use (misuse) of any prescription stimulant, any stimulant other th...

background and objectives: the expanding field of psychopharmacology is constantly seeking new and improved drugs to treat psychiatric disorders. although psychotropic drugs have had a remarkable impact in psychiatry, their utilization, effectiveness, and side effects in the in clinical practice need continuous study. the present study was thus designed to analyze the pattern of psychotropic dr...