A double-blind trial of 2% aspirin ointment was performed with 40 patients with painful diseases of the oral mucosa. At the beginning of treatment, patients received a medication case containing either the 2% aspirin ointment or placebo paste. The patients were allowed to apply the medicine to themselves whenever spontaneous pain in a lesion increased. This preparation provided a topically external use in the oral cavity, and the total dosage of aspirin in paste amounted to 6-30 mg per day, which was much lower than that had been generally administered. This study drug was thus expected to avoid side effects such as peptic ulcers detected after orally prescribed dosage of aspirin. Efficacy was assessed according to the standardization of evaluation of analgesics efficacy published in 1990. Outcomes for the patients receiving the 2% aspirin ointment were superior especially on rapidity of the effect. Most patients treated with 2% aspirin ointment adhered to the prescribed regimen, and no side effects were reported. Group differences for most criteria for efficacy were statistically significant. It was concluded that the 2% aspirin ointment gave such prompt alleviation of pain associated with oral mucous ulcers that had never been reported to date.

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Zonisamide (ZNS), a new antiepileptic drug which features a wide antiepileptic spectrum, is commonly prescribed concomitantly with other drugs. However, there appears to be little data on the drug interaction of ZNS with other coadministered drugs. Concentrations of ZNS and co-medications in plasma were measured simultaneously by HPLC. The ratio of plasma concentration to the administered dose of ZNS in the monotherapy was significantly higher than that in the polytherapy (P>0.05). When co-medications numbered more than two, the ratio was significantly decreased compared with ZNS alone, indicating the possibility that co-medications induce decreases in plasma concentration of ZNS. The present findings provide useful information that the monitoring of plasma concentration of ZNS is needed to adjust dosage regiments of ZNS in the polytherapy.

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Monitoring of the literature on adverse reactions over a period of many years is undertaken by the drug information (DI) service as one aspect of drug monitoring, and the formation of a database for more effective utilization of the collected and evaluated information was attempted. The set items include the title of the literature reference, the source, abstract, generic and brand name of drugs and the names of their manufacturers, therapeutic category and adverse reaction symptoms. These items can be retrieved individually or in various combinations.
Therefore, when retrieval was done by therapeutic category, drug and adverse reaction symptoms were undertaken for 661 items of information in the adverse reaction literature added to the database in 1989. The system was evaluated, making retrieval of adverse reaction symptoms, which was difficult using conventional procedures, possible instantaneously. This result confirmed that the applicability of system was satisfactory. In a comparison of the information in the database with the contents of package inserts and foreign compendia and a study of evaluations of the information, it was possible to rapidity collect information on severe or new adverse reactions not found in package inserts, etc., and some of these showed a rather strong causal relation with the drug concerned. Therefore, this database appeared to be useful source of information.

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Small volume injections (SVIs) of NaHCO₃ and heparin used in the United States have been reported to contain 60-70% of the maximum allowable number of particles described in United States Pharmacopeia (USP). We evaluated SVIs of KC1, CaCl₂, NaHCO₃ and heparin used in Japan using the electronic liquid-borne particle system. All SVIs examined showed remarkably lower numbers of particles than the limits described in USP. Even if several injections of each preparations are used together, the particle number may not exceed the USP limits.

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In our previous report, we showed that producing hydrogen peroxide increased on standing in infusion solution to which was added multivitamins. Likewise, producing hydrogen peroxide increased on standing after mixing, increasing to 6.76 ppm with the combination of KN solution MG3 with Otsuka MV and to 6.65 ppm with the combination of Solita T^®-4 with Multamin^®. The Zn²⁺ and Mn²⁺ metal ions showed a little effect on the degradation of ascorbic acid (AsA) in spite of the shield, whereas Cu²⁺ remarkably promoted AsA degradation.

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We have constructed a Drug Information Database by using a method that employs the commercial application software called “KIRI”, and have constructed hospital formulary system. As compared with our last publication, we could easily edit and timely print hospital formulary. Consequently, the work necessary to writing the manuscript could be considerably reduced.
Constructing the Drug Information Database, enables us to make use the drug information for a variety of other purposes.

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Recently, automatic tablet counting and packing system (ATC) machines have come to be widely used for the one-dose packing of tablets, capsules, and so on. Although we have also used the ATC at Hachioji Pharmaceutical Center Pharmacy, the coloration (i. e. change in color) was frequently observed in several kinds of tablets contained in the tablet cases of the ATC. The coloration is attributed to light, humidity and temperature in the room.
We have previously reported that there is some possibility of participation of dibutylhydroxytoluene (BHT) which is included in the machine oil or the tablet case as the antioxidant. In the present study, we selected 34 kinds of commercial tablets, which empirically have the possibility of coloration as samples, and examined the effects of coexitence with BHT, light, humidity and temperature on the coloration of tablets. The effects were examined under the following conditions: tablets were stored with or without BHT under 74.9% relative humidity (R. H.) at 60°C to examine of the effect of coexistence with BHT; tablets were exposed to excessive light under 74.9% R.H. at 60°C the effect of light; tablets were stored under 0, 49.9, 74.9% R.H. at 60°C for examination of the effect of humidity; and tablets were stored at 30 and 60°C under 74.9% R.H. to determine of the effect of temperature.
As a result, it was observed that the coloration of several kinds of tablets was accelerated by coexistence with BHT, while the coloration of many kinds of tablets was accelerated by exposure to light and high humidity.

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The compatibility of lysozyme syrup with some commercial syrup preparations was investigated. When the lysozyme syrup was mixed with each of the five syrups (hydroxyzine pamoate, ketotifen fumarate, tranilast, cherry bark extract, dextromethorphan hydrobromide and ambroxol hydrochloride) the lysozyme activity was decreased by 50% after 14 days at 30°C in the light. By mixing lysozyme with cherry bark extract, dextromethorphan hydrobromide or ambroxol hydrochloride, the lysozyme activity remained stable for 14 days under the condition of 4°C in the dark. Although sediment was produced at 7 days by mixing lysozyme syrup with oxatomide, the lysozyme activity did not change. These results indicate that the mixing of lysozyme syrup with hydroxyzine pamoate, oxatomide, ketotifen fumarate and tranilast is not recommendable even at 4°C in the dark.

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Patients who received pharmacist-conducted counseling in the medical ward of the Second Department of Internal Medicine, Gifu University Hospital, were monitored for drug use from August 1992 to May 1994. The average number of drugs received by patients who were administered digitalis, theophylline, warfarin or adrenocorticoids was 8.0, and the average number of drugs received by patients who were administered the other drugs without these 4 drugs was 5.8. It was shown that 71.4% of patients given digitalis, theophylline, warfarin or adrenocorticoids were concomitantly administered drugs which were suspected the drug interactions, whereas this condition arose in 33.3% of patients given other drugs. This finding suggests that the risk of incurring on adverse drug reaction was increased in patients receiving these drugs.

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