Hind Tellawi Hatoum

• BSc, MS, PhD
• University of Illinois Chicago

Background: Colonoscopy is the most widely used test to screen for colorectal cancer but its use may be hindered by patients' inability to complete the bowel preparation. Patient-reported satisfaction with bowel-cleansing preparations has received little attention. We assessed the reliability and validity of a patient satisfaction survey used in t...

Abstract OBJECTIVE: To determine the cost effectiveness of bioengineered hyaluronic acid (BioHA, 1% sodium hyaluronate) intra-articular injections in treating osteoarthritis knee pain in poor responders to conventional care (CC) including nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) and analgesics. Two decision analytic models compared BioHA treat...

Background: Febuxostat is recommended as 1 of 2 first-line urate-lowering therapies (ULT) for treating gout in the 2012 American College of Rheumatology Guidelines. Several efficacy trials have compared febuxostat with allopurinol treatment, but real-world comparative data are limited. Methods: We compared effectiveness of the 2 agents in reachi...

Androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) is used as first-line therapy for locally advanced or metastatic prostate cancer aiming to reduce testosterone to castrate levels. The authors present an overview of the existing cost-effectiveness studies of ADT in prostate cancer. Cost-effectiveness of ADT was reviewed using a systematic search of the peer-revie...

Degarelix, approved in the USA in 2008, is a gonadotropin-releasing hormone antagonist, representing one of the latest additions to androgen deprivation therapy (ADT). ADT is used as first-line therapy for locally advanced or metastatic prostate cancer with the aim to reduce testosterone to castrate levels. Like other gonadotropin-releasing hormone...

Background: 1st generation 5-hydroxytryptamine receptor antagonists (5-HT3 RAs), and palonosetron, a 2nd generation 5-HT3 RA, are indicated for the prevention of chemotherapy (CT)-induced nausea and vomiting (CINV) associated with moderately (MEC) and highly emetogenic CT agents (HEC). This study explores the impact of step therapy policies requir...

Data are limited on the use of adjuvant imatinib in patients with gastrointestinal stromal tumor (GIST) outside of clinical trials. This retrospective, population-based, matched-cohort study evaluated adjuvant imatinib treatment patterns, assessed impact on clinical outcomes, and estimated effectiveness based on number needed to treat (NNT). GIST-r...

To evaluate the safety of repeated intra-articular (IA) injections of Euflexxa® (1% sodium hyaluronate; IA--BioHA) for painful knee osteoarthritis (OA). Participants who completed the randomized, double-blind, 26-week FLEXX Trial comparing IA-BioHA to IA saline (IA-SA) for knee OA(1) received three weekly IA-BioHA injections in a 26-week Extension...

The purpose of this study is to describe patterns of hypomethylating agents (HMA) use and to compare treatment outcomes of decitabine (DAC) and azacitidine (AZA) with respect to transfusion dependence and the use of erythropoiesis-stimulating agents (ESA) treatment in commercially-insured patients with Myelodysplastic Syndromes (MDS). A retrospecti...

Zoledronic acid (ZA) reduces skeletal complications in breast cancer patients with bone metastases. This study explored relationships between ZA treatment persistence and patient outcomes. Two thousand three hundred ninety-four female patients with breast cancer and bone metastasis were identified from the PharMetrics(®) Integrated Database between...

The aim of this study was to compare the risk of chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting (CINV) events for various 5-HT(3) RAs in patients who received moderately (MEC) or highly emetogenic chemotherapy (HEC) by evaluating hospital or emergency department (ED) admissions. PharMetrics claims database was used to identify patients diagnosed with bre...

New management arrangements which were initiated in National Health Service hospitals on April 1, 1990, required hospital pharmacists to draw up internal contracts for their services with clinical directorates/clinical speciality managers. There is an urgent requirement to be able to describe the work and benefits, both in terms of patient care and...

This study was conducted to determine outcomes and costs of treating complicated skin and skin-structure infections (cSSSIs) due to gram-positive only, gram-negative only, or mixed pathogens (gram-positive and gram-negative), including those with methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) or Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Data on length of stay (L...

To evaluate the effects of timing and length of zoledronic acid (ZA) treatment on outcomes for patients with prostate cancer in clinical practice. Patients with prostate cancer and first bone metastasis diagnosed from January 2003 to October 2006 were included. Patients were considered 'untreated' if no ZA was given, 'early ZA-treated' if ZA was in...

To quantify the impact of activities of daily living (ADL) scores on the risk of nursing home placement (NHP) in Alzheimer's disease (AD) patients. Models predicting NHP for AD patients have depended on cognitive deterioration as the primary measure. However, there is increased recognition that both patient functioning and cognition are predictive...

We estimated the incremental clinical and economic burden of skin and skin structure infections (SSSI) in hospitalized patients using a matched cohort study design. Cases with SSSI as secondary diagnosis were matched with up to 4 randomly selected non-SSSI controls by age, gender, admission date, and ICD-9 code of principal diagnosis. Among the 1 4...

To report the FLEXX trial, the first well-controlled study assessing the safety and efficacy of Euflexxa (1% sodium hyaluronate; IA-BioHA) therapy for knee osteoarthritis (OA) at 26 weeks. This was a randomized, double-blind, multicenter, saline-controlled study. Subjects with chronic knee OA were randomized to 3 weekly intra-articular (IA) injecti...

Bone is among the most common sites of metastasis in patients with advanced cancer, and the development of bone metastases places patients at increased risk for skeletal complications. This retrospective claims analysis included only patients with a diagnosis of bone metastasis who had a single type of solid tumor of the breast (women), prostate, o...

The Neuropsychiatric Inventory-Nursing Home Version (NPI-NH) was used to study the impact of rivastigmine (Exelon; Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation, East Hanover, NJ), on occupational disruptiveness (OD), a proxy measure for professional caregiver burden. The study was a prospective, multicenter, open-label, single-arm trial with NH residents p...

This study compared the cost and effectiveness of highly purified, human-derived follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) (Bravelle) to recombinant FSH (Follistim) using Markov modeling and Monte Carlo simulation. One IVF treatment cycle resulted in costs of 11,584 dollars +/- 211 dollars for human-derived FSH and 12,762 dollars +/- 170 dollars for recom...

To test the hypothesis that the Health Utilities Index Mark III (HUI3) and the SF-6D, based on the SF-36, generate similar health state values, and to test and compare their discriminant validity and responsiveness. The HUI3 and SF-36 were administered to 331 patients enrolled in a double-blind, multinational phase III clinical trial in patients un...

To evaluate the psychometric assumptions underlying the construction and scoring of SF-36 scales and summary measures among clinical trial participants with arthritis. Cross-sectional SF-36 data from the baseline assessment of adult patients (n = 1,016) participating in four placebo-controlled clinical trials of treatment for arthritis were analyze...

To evaluate the validity of SF-36 Health Survey (SF-36) scale scores and summary measure scores to describe the health burden of arthritis and to be responsive to clinical indicators of arthritis severity used in four clinical trials. Adults participating in four double-blinded, placebo-controlled clinical trials of therapy for osteoarthritis or rh...

The SF-36 Arthritis-Specific Health Index (ASHI) was constructed to improve the responsiveness of the SF-36 Health Survey to changes in the severity of arthritis through the use of arthritis-specific scoring algorithms. This study compared the responsiveness of the ASHI and other generic scales and summary measures scored from the SF-36 in clinical...

An arthritis-specific health index (ASHI) for the SF-36 Health Survey was developed by studying its responsiveness to changes in clinical indicators of arthritis severity. Longitudinal data from 1,076 patients participating in four placebo-controlled trials were analyzed. All had at least a 6-month history of moderate to severe osteoarthritis or rh...

Objective. The SF-36 Arthritis-Specific Health Index (ASHI) was constructed to improve the responsiveness of the SF-36 Health Survey to changes in the severity of arthritis through the use of arthritis-specific scoring algorithms. This study compared the responsiveness of the ASHI and other generic scales and summary measures scored from the SF-36...

Objective. To evaluate the validity of SF-36 Health Survey (SF-36) scale scores and summary measure scores to describe the health burden of arthritis and to be responsive to clinical indicators of arthritis severity used in four clinical trials. Methods. Adults participating in four double-blinded, placebo-controlled clinical trials of therapy for...

Objective. To evaluate the psychometric assumptions underlying the construction and scoring of SF-36 scales and summary measures among clinical trial participants with arthritis. Methods. Cross-sectional SF-36 data from the baseline assessment of adult patients (n = 1,016) participating in four placebo-controlled clinical trials of treatment for ar...

Insomnia is a prevalent sleep complaint which has been reported to be greatly associated with reduced health-related quality of life (HR-QOL) and increased healthcare resource use. This study documents the prevalence of insomnia, and its impact on patients' HR-QOL and healthcare resource use in managed-care settings in the US. A multi-site survey o...

The purpose of this study was to determine the prevalence and cost of hospitalization for upper gastrointestinal complications, including peptic ulcers with hemorrhage or perforation. Upper gastrointestinal complications and corresponding economic data were obtained from two sources. The first was a 20% sample of all community hospital discharges (...

The purpose of the study was to assess the prevalence of and factors associated with insomnia among enrollees of managed care organizations (MCOs). A survey was distributed either by mail or during a clinic visit to 7,500 enrollees of five MCOs in the United States. The survey included a sleep questionnaire, demographic questions, and questions abo...

Due to increasing financial pressure on maintaining and improving pharmacy services, there is a need for productivity data and time distribution among different activities for pharmacy practice residents and their faculty preceptors (pharmacotherapists). This study measured the clinical productivity of 13 residents and 25 pharmacotherapists for a 1...

Gastrointestinal tract (GI) complications associated with nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) use are the most common serious adverse drug reactions in the United States. Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs cause both minor GI side effects such as abdominal pain and vomiting and serious GI events such as ulcers and bleeding. This study eva...

This analysis evaluated the clinical and demographic risk factors for a suspected, serious nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID)-induced gastrointestinal (GI) complication in everyday clinical practice and calculated the risk reduction associated with misoprostol therapy in these "at-risk" patients. Using logistic regression analysis, the dat...

To determine the role of inhaled corticosteroids in the treatment of mild chronic asthma. SOURCE OF STUDIES: Searches of MEDLINE and Index Medicus for English language literature dealing with asthma and inhaled corticosteroids. All retrieved articles were subjected to predetermined criteria for inclusion in the meta-analysis. Inclusion criteria cen...

Pharmacists are encouraged to improve their knowledge and use of pharmacoeconomic data in formulary selection. The formulary selection process has changed significantly in recent years. Among its most significant uses is its potential for cost containment strategies. An overview is presented of the origin as well as the potential impact of pharmaco...

To review the published literature on the value and acceptance of pharmaceutical services provided by pharmacists in ambulatory care settings. Articles published between 1960 and 1992. A MEDLINE search of the English-language literature was conducted using the terms pharmacists, services, and ambulatory settings. Studies were selected for inclusion...

Many patients with end-stage renal disease are treated with a complex pharmacotherapeutic regimen that requires constant and thorough monitoring. The role of a clinical pharmacist in contributing to the care of patients receiving long-term hemodialysis in an outpatient dialysis unit was assessed. Therapeutic interventions provided routinely by the...

In the midst of society's debate and focus on patient care and outcome, healthcare providers must articulate their strategic positioning to be part of the collective societal drive. Pharmacy as an integral component of healthcare provided, must also take the opportunity to create its own agenda for change. This agenda revolves around pharmacists ag...

This study investigates both cost-avoidance and improvement in the quality of care and patient outcome attributed to pharmacist intervention in four ambulatory care clinics. Four clinical pharmacists reported 199 interventions made in the pharmacotherapeutic management of 87 ambulatory clinic patients in 1 month. The majority of interventions were...

The Medicaid Prudent Pharmaceutical Purchasing Bill is designed to improve Medicaid patients' access to medications in return for signed rebate agreements from pharmaceutical manufacturers. The legislation also recognizes and attempts to develop the potential clinical role of pharmacy through mandates for drug utilization review, patient counseling...

A multilevel model reviewing four assessment levels for pediatric serum drug concentrations was developed. Criteria for appropriate indication, sample collection, documentation, and utilization were based on therapeutic drug monitoring principles. The model was applied to 222 pediatric serum drug concentrations. Inadequate documentation was a major...

The societal move to focus on patient healthcare outcomes as a measure of provider performance is discussed. Recent steps taken by the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations to include outcome criteria as part of its accreditation process represent one such example. Pharmacists must define and defend their role in patients' p...

The effects of an educational program designed to improve nurses' knowledge of the use of emergency medications in the pediatric intensive-care unit (PICU) are reported. The clinical pharmacist for a six-bed PICU and a clinical nurse educator developed a program to assess and extend PICU nurses' knowledge of emergency medications with respect to ca...

Society is experiencing major restructuring best articulated by John Naisbitt's Megatrends. This article contends that many changes in pharmacy practice are not incongruent with overall megatrends being experienced by our nation in general. Thus pharmacy practitioners and the profession must work diligently to ensure that both reflect social adjust...

Rational drug therapy has historically been viewed as the right drug, in the right dose, at the right time, for the right patient. Today, the emphasis on cost containment has added an extra dimension: cost-effective therapeutic regimens. Most stages of the DUP have not been extensively studied. Evidence presented to date reflects duplication of eff...

The labor cost of dispensing, administering, and monitoring unit dose oral solid dosage forms (UDs) in a large teaching hospital was determined by microcost analysis. The costs associated with UDs dispensed by the midnight central pharmacy and by a satellite pharmacy were evaluated by use of both work-sampling and time-and-motion studies. Pharmacy...

Indicators used by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) surveyors to assess compliance with the requirement for drug regimen review (DRR) in long-term care (LTC) facilities were evaluated by a group of pharmacy researchers in one LTC facility. This facility was a university affiliated 485-bed skilled and intermediate care LTC where ind...

Cutting the pharmacy budget is a tool widely used by hospital administrators as an effective way to contain their institutional costs. The authors of this article utilized data published by the Lilly Hospital Pharmacy Surveys to support their contention that drug costs, more than personnel costs, are responsible for the increased expenditures attri...

Clinical pharmacists in this study hospital reported 1027 interventions in patient drug therapy over two time periods of three and two weeks each. When peer-reviewed for clinical significance, 36 of these interventions were deemed significant in terms of saving patients' lives or preserving major organ functions; 983 were judged to improve drug the...

We used a novel approach to cost-justify clinical pharmacy services on a general surgery team in nine diagnosis-related group cases. The clinical pharmacist monitored nine patients longitudinally on a general surgery team from admission to discharge and intervened in their therapeutic management. Each recommendation was analyzed for rationale, acce...

The costs involved in dispensing a prescription in an outpatient pharmacy at a 450-bed teaching hospital were studied. Work sampling was used to determine pharmacist and technician time involved in dispensing a prescription, and other direct and indirect costs involved in dispensing a prescription were isolated. The cost per prescription was calcul...

Clinical pharmacists in this study hospital reported 1027 interventions in patient drug therapy over two time periods of three and two weeks, respectively. These interventions were subjected to self and peer reviews and to cost-avoidance evaluation. The most frequent type of intervention was recommendations related to drug selection (29.6 percent)....

Cefazolin utilization guidelines were established by representatives of major participants in the patient care process in a 520-bed teaching hospital. Patients admitted to certain hospital units and placed on cefazolin therapy were concurrently monitored for compliance with guidelines by clinical pharmacists (experimental group), while patients adm...

The purpose of this paper is to introduce the interested reader to research priorities and needs for the effective management of hospital pharmacy services. Reference is first made to the new economic milieu for today's management along with the financial incentives for the delivery of cost-justifiable pharmaceutical services and products. The prer...

Rats were trained to a high level of performance of a conditioned avoidance response in a shuttlebox to test effects of several classical stimulants in comparison to a variety of hallucinogens. A previously-reported biphasic pattern of effects of mescaline on shuttle avoidance was replicated and extended to 12 other hallucinogens of both phenylethy...

Despite a paucity of data on its animal pharmacology and toxicology, MDMA [Ecstasy, XTC, ADAM; (+/-)-3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine] was introduced as an "underground" (FDA-unapproved) adjunct to psychotherapy in the late 1970's and early 1980's, in addition to its use as a recreational drug. Analysis of the limited experimental literature indic...

Components of the professional role of the pharmacist were studied. Role components evaluated were people, status, and science. A questionnaire was administered to the student body of the School of Pharmacy, the University of Mississippi, for two consecutive academic years. The questionnaire is appended. (Author/MLW)

The costs of preparing different small-volume injectables (SVIs) in a centralized i.v. admixture pharmacy in a 650-bed teaching hospital were calculated using a microcosting method. The types of SVIs produced and methods of preparation were identified. Time-and-motion and work-sampling studies were performed to determine the amount of pharmacist an...

The primary objectives of the article were accomplished by providing both a bibliography of articles dealing with clinical pharmacy services in acute-care facilities and summaries of those constituting original research reports on clinical pharmacy services. However, in the process, we made the following interesting observations. We found that arti...

Presentan los autores una compilación de 305 artículos publicados entre 1974–85 sobre servicios de farmacia clínica ofrecidos en hospitales para cuidado de estadía corta. Los artículos han sido clasificados de acuerdo a la función clínica que en ellos se describe para agilizar la búsqueda de información por el lector. Noventa y tres de los artículo...

An attitude scale was administered on a cross-sectional basis to pharmacy students in 3 professional years and alumni 1 year post-graduation. The instrument, previously used in a study of social awareness among Canadian health professional students, revealed, on application, that social attitudes tended to decline as students progressed through sch...

Lethality to both isolated and aggregated mice was determined for graded i.p. doses of d-amphetamine, dl-4-methoxyamphetamine (PMA), dl-2,5-dimethoxyamphetamine (DMA), dl-2,5-dimethoxy-4-bromoamphetamine (DOB), dl-2,5-dimethoxy-4-methylamphetamine (DOM) and d1-3,4-methylenedioxyamphetamine (MDA). Haloperidol (2.0 mg/kg), propranolol (10 mg/kg) and...

Mescaline (MES) and d-amphetamine (AMP) served as reference agents in a study of acute toxic and behavioral effects of four methoxy derivatives of AMP: dl-4-methoxyamphetamine (PMA), dl-2,5-dimethoxyamphetamine (DMA), dl-2,5-dimethoxy-4-bromoamphetamine (DOB), and dl-2,5-dimethoxy-4-methylamphetamine (DOM). Acute (24-hr) LD50 values were determined...

Dose mortality curves were traced in Swiss Webster albino mice under both isolated and aggregated (N = 5/group) conditions after intraperitoneal injections of: d amphetamine (AMP), dl 4 methoxyamphetamine (PMA), dl 2,5 dimethoxyamphetamine, dl 2,5 dimethoxy 4 bromoamphetamine (DOB), dl 2,5 dimethoxy 4 methylamphetamine (DOM), dl 3,4 methylenedioxya...