Abstract
There are many medical supplies, which are required to undergo periodical laboratory tests to prevent the occurrence of serious adverse effects. However, it is uncertain as to whether or not such laboratory tests are actually carried out routinely at hospitals. In order to prevent serious adverse effects, it is important to clarify the current performance of the laboratory tests in hospitals and to perform such laboratory tests properly. In this study, we surveyed the current performance of laboratory tests on Flutamide, Ticlopidine, Benzbromarone, Acarbose, and Thiamazole, which have all been recently required to undergo laboratory tests to prevent potential adverse effects.
The present study showed the performance rate of proper laboratory tests, based on package inserts, to be 60, 33.3 and 46.2% for Ticlopidine, Acarbose, and Thiamazole, respectively. Surprisingly, the performance rate of proper laboratory tests for Flutamide was zero, in spite of the fact that it is well known to cause serious liver dysfunction.
Our findings suggest a poor recognition by medical staff members of the importance of laboratory tests in or-der to prevent adverse effects. It is therefore important to promote the implementation of periodical laboratory tests, and pharmacists should play a significant role in appropriately conducting such needed laboratory tests to avoid the occurrence of serious adverse effects.
