• Korean Journal of Clinical Pharmacy
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• v.23 no.1
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• pp.49-56
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• 2013

Objective: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the patterns of Over-the-Counter (OTC) drugs and their interactions with prescription drugs in adults visiting a community pharmacy. Method: The subjects were 151 adults aged over 20 years visiting a community pharmacy in Asan-si from December 16th 2011 to February 1st 2012. We used a survey questionnaire. The survey inquired about the prevalence and the details of any OTC drug use and the characteristics of the study subjects. The drug interaction classification system from Lexicomp's Lexi-interact data fields was used to identify OTC drugs likely to have clinically significant interactions with prescription drugs. Results: The patterns of OTC drug use were related to thirties (from 30 to 40 years old), female gender, higher education, non-smoking, sometimes use of alcohol, and self-perceived normal health status. The most commonly used OTC drug category was antipyretic-analgesics (n=104, 53.3%), and the most commonly used ingredient was acetaminophen (n=67, 64.4%). The biggest motivation for taking OTC drugs was suggestion by pharmacists, reported by 55.6%. After reviewing each patient's prescription drugs and OTC drugs, 14 patients (36.8%) of 38 patients using prescription drugs were taking drug combinations with potential for clinically significant interactions. The concomitant use of OTC drugs with prescription drugs may lead to increased potentially harmful interactions. Conclusion: It is suggested that health-care professionals should be more aware of the potential and possible interactions and take into better account their patients' OTC drug use.

• Journal of Pharmaceutical Investigation
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• v.27 no.3
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• pp.181-187
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• 1997

The purpose of this work was to investigate pharmacokinetics of alcohol as a function of dose and time of administration of ethanol. The pharmacokinetics of alcohol 15 min after and before oral administration of aspartate-containing compositions to rats were also evaluated. The retention time of acetaldehyde, alcohol and isopropyl alcohol an internal standard in gas chromatogram was 3.6, 6.0 and 10.5 min, respectively. The maximum concentration of alcohol $(C_{max})$ and area under the blood concentration (AUC) were significanly increased as a function of ethanol dose in a nonlinear fashion. The significant diurnal variation of alcohol pharmacokinetics was also noted, showing fast metabolism and elimination when given orally in the night time. When APAP was given after administration alcohol (1g/kg) to rats, AUC and $C_{max}$ were increased when compared to alcohol only. However, AUC and $C_{max}$ were decreased when aspartate or standard complex compositions containing aceaminophen (APAP, 250mg). sodium L-aspartate(25 mg), dl-methionine (125 mg) and anhydrous caffeine (25 mg) was orally given by coupling malate/asparate shuttle in hepatocyte. The blood alcohol concentration profiles between aspartate and standard complex compositions were similar when given before or after administration alcohol (1g/kg) to rats. No significant difference of administration sequence was observed. However, it was noted that AUC and $C_{max}$ of standard complex compositions given before alcohol administration were significantly lower when compared with alcohol only. Based on these findings, dose, time of administration and composition of drugs to improve alcohol metabolism and elimination were considered to be important in the pharmacokinetics of alcohol. The administration sequence of drug compositions and alcohol might be also considerd.

• Journal of Pharmaceutical Investigation
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• v.34 no.6
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• pp.491-497
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• 2004

We investigated some important factors which affect the transdermal flux of ketoprofen, a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory agent, as a first step to provide some basic knowledge for the development of a iontophoretic transdermal patch system. Factors such as current density, polarity, buffer (HEPES) and electrolyte concentration and pH were studied using hairless mouse skin. The effect of poly(L-lysin), which is known to affect the electro-osmotic flow through skin, on flux was also studied. Passive flux was about $20\;{\mu}g/cm^2hr$ at pH 4.0, but was negligible at pH 7.4 where all ketoprofen molecules dissolved are ionized (ketoprofen pKa=5.94). At pH 4.0, application of anodal current increased the flux further above the passive level, however anodal flux at pH 7.4 was much smaller than passive flux at pH 4.0. The application of cathodal current at pH 4.0 increased the average flux to $30-40\;{\mu}g/cm^2hr$, depending on the current density applied. At pH 7.4, cathodal flux was only about $5\;{\mu}g/cm^2hr$. Decrease in buffer and electrolyte concentration increased this cathodal flux about 10 fold. However decrease in HEPES buffer concentration 100 fold did not affect the flux. Anodal flux of acetaminophen was much larger than cathodal flux, indicating that electroosmotic flow can be playing an important role in the flux. Poly(L-lysin) increased the cathodal flux at pH 7.4. These results provide some important insights into the mechanism of transdermal flux of ketoprofen and the role of electroosmotic flow.

• Journal of Korean Neurosurgical Society
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• v.60 no.4
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• pp.456-464
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• 2017

Objective : Although little is known about its origins, neck pain may be related to several associated anatomical pathologies. We aimed to characterize the incidence and features of chronic neck pain and analyze the relationship between neck pain severity and its affecting factors. Methods : Between March 2012 and July 2013, we studied 216 patients with chronic neck pain. Initially, combined tramadol (37.5 mg) plus acetaminophen (325 mg) was administered orally twice daily (b.i.d.) to all patients over a 2-week period. After two weeks, patients were evaluated for neck pain during an outpatient clinic visit. If the numeric rating scale of the patient had not decreased to 5 or lower, a cervical medial branch block (MBB) was recommended after double-dosed previous medication trial. We classified all patients into two groups (mild vs. severe neck pain group), based on medication efficacy. Logistic regression tests were used to evaluate the factors associated with neck pain severity. Results : A total of 198 patients were included in the analyses, due to follow-up loss in 18 patients. While medication was successful in reducing pain in 68.2% patients with chronic neck pain, the remaining patients required cervical MBB. Lateral cervical curvature, such as a straight or sigmoid type curve, was found to be significantly associated with the severity of neck pain. Conclusion : We managed chronic neck pain with a simple pharmacological management protocol followed by MBB. We should keep in mind that it may be difficult to manage the patient with straight or sigmoid lateral curvature only with oral medication.

• Journal of Korean Society of Water and Wastewater
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• v.33 no.5
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• pp.367-377
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• 2019

In this study, the fate and removal of 15 pharmaceuticals (including stimulants, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, antibiotics, etc.) in unit processes of a sewage treatment plant (STP) were investigated. Mass loads of pharmaceuticals were 2,598 g/d in the influent, 2,745 g/d in the primary effluent, 143 g/d in the secondary effluent, and 134 g/d in the effluent. The mass loads were reduced by 95% in the biological treatment process, but total phosphorous treatment did not show a significant effect on the removal of most pharmaceuticals. Also, mass balance analysis was performed to evaluate removal characteristics of pharmaceuticals in the biological treatment process. Acetaminophen, caffeine, acetylsalicylic acid, cefradine, and naproxen were efficiently removed in the biological treatment process mainly due to biodegradation. Removal efficiencies of gemfibrozil, ofloxacin, and ciprofloxacin were not high, but their removal was related to sorption onto sludge. This study provides useful information on understanding removal characteristics of pharmaceuticals in unit processes in the STP.

• Journal of Veterinary Science
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• v.22 no.1
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• pp.9.1-9.11
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• 2021

Background: Scalding burn injuries can occur in everyday life but occur more frequently in young children. Therefore, it is important to develop more effective burn treatments. Objectives: This study examined the effects of bee venom (BV) stimulation on scalding burn injury-induced nociception in mice as a new treatment for burn pain. Methods: To develop a burn injury model, the right hind paw was immersed temporarily in hot water (65℃, 3 seconds). Immediately after the burn, BV (0.01, 0.02, or 0.1 mg/kg) was injected subcutaneously into the ipsilateral knee area once daily for 14 days. A von Frey test was performed to assess the nociceptive response, and the altered walking parameters were evaluated using an automated gait analysis system. In addition, the peripheral and central expression changes in substance P (Sub P) were measured in the dorsal root ganglion and spinal cord by immunofluorescence. Results: Repeated BV treatment at the 2 higher doses used in this study (0.02 and 0.1 mg/kg) alleviated the pain responses remarkably and recovered the gait performances to the level of acetaminophen (200 mg/kg, intraperitoneal, once daily), which used as the positive control group. Moreover, BV stimulation had an inhibitory effect on the increased expression of Sub P in the peripheral and central nervous systems by a burn injury. Conclusions: These results suggest that a peripheral BV treatment may have positive potency in treating burn-induced pain.

• Journal of Korean Medicine Rehabilitation
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• v.29 no.2
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• pp.101-113
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• 2019

Objectives Bogol-tang has clinically been used to protect joint cartilage and to treat osteoarthritis. Our objective was to study the protective effect of Bogol-tang extract (BGT) in functional impairment, behavioral disorders, cartilage loss and pathological changes in a monoiodoacetate (MIA)-induced murine osteoarthritis (OA) model and interleukin (IL)-$1{\beta}$ -treated primary rat chondrocytes. Methods Mouse knee joints were injected with MIA, a chemical that inhibits glycolysis and causes joint inflammation and matrix loss. MIA-OA induced mice orally administered BGT or acetaminophen (AAP) for 18 days by daily. Primary rat chondrocytes were pretreated with BGT or dexamethasone (DEX) and followed by co-incubation with IL-$1{\beta}$ (10 ng/mL). Results In MIA-OA mice model, BGT led to delayed response on hot plate analysis, and suppressed the cartilage loss and damages in joint tissues. BGT suppressed the elevated levels of inflammatory mediators, nitrite and $PGE_2$, the gene expression of matrix degrading enzymes, and extracellular-signal-regulated kinases 1/2 and c-JunN-terminal kinase phosphorylation in IL-$1{\beta}$-treated primary rat chondrocytes. Conclusions Our results suggest that BGT improve the knee joint function and delay the cartilage damages by anti-nociceptive, anti-inflammatory and ant-catabolic effects, which indicate BGT could be a potential candidate for osteoarthritis treatment.

• The Korean Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology
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• v.25 no.5
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• pp.385-393
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• 2021

Tissue factor (TF) activates the coagulation system and has an important role in the pathogenesis of various diseases. Our previous study stated that retinoid receptors (RAR-α and RXR-α) are released as a lipid droplet in monocrotaline/lipopolysaccharide-induced idiosyncratic liver toxicity in mice. Herein, the interdependence between the release of retinoid receptors RAR-α and RXR-α and TF in N-acetyl-p-aminophenol (APAP)-induced mice liver toxicity, is investigated. Serum alanine transaminase (ALT) level, platelet and white blood cells (WBCs) counts, protein expression of fibrin, TF, cyclin D1 and cleaved caspase-3 in liver tissues are analyzed. In addition, histopathological evaluation and survival study are also performed. The results indicate that using of TF-antisense (TF-AS) deoxyoligonucleotide (ODN) injection (6 mg/kg), to block TF protein synthesis, significantly restores the elevated level of ALT and WBCs and corrects thrombocytopenia in mice injected with APAP. TF-AS prevents the peri-central overexpression of liver TF, fibrin, cyclin D1 and cleaved caspase-3. The release of RXR-α and RAR-α droplets, in APAP treated sections, is inhibited upon treatment with TF-AS. In conclusion, the above findings designate that the released RXR-α and RAR-α in APAP liver toxicity is TF dependent. Additionally, the enhancement of cyclin D1 to caspase-3-dependent apoptosis can be prevented by blocking of TF protein synthesis.

• Journal of Korean Society on Water Environment
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• v.37 no.6
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• pp.501-509
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• 2021

In 2018, total 263 micro and emerging contaminants were selected as target substances by the Ministry of Environment, and 80 of them were first-class substance including endocrine disruptors, residual Pharmaceuticals and Personal Care Products (PPCPs), residual organic pollutants, pesticides and heavy metals. In this study, in order to evaluate the Hazard Quotient (HQ) of the 80 types in the domestic water environment the concentration of discharged effluent and nearby water environment reported by Korean institutes since 2010 was investigated. There were 45 substances reported to be detected, and Measurement Environment Concentration (MEC) were obtained by collectively converting them into water environment concentration. For biotoxicity, half maximal Effective Dose (EC50) to Daphnia magna, a water fleas species widely adopted in Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) was applied. As for the biotoxicity level, the Predicted No-Effect Concentration (PNEC) was obtained by applying the Assessment Factor (AF) and the HQ was derived by dividing it from the MEC. As a result of calculating the HQ, more than 1 substances were Cabamazepine, Mefenamic acid, Acetaminophen, Ibuprofen, Nonylphenol, Nickel, Erythromycin, Acetylslic acid, etc. Meanwhile, perfluorinated compounds were identified as hazardous substances in the water env ironment, with 5 out of 14 species included in the 20 ranks of first-class substance.

• Journal of Sensor Science and Technology
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• v.30 no.4
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• pp.229-235
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• 2021

This study presents a simple approach for the assembly of a free-standing conductive electronic nanofilm of single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) suitable for enzymatic electrochemical biosensors. A large-scale SWNT electronic film was successfully produced by the dialysis of p-Terphenyl-4,4''-dithiol (TPDT)-treated SWNTs. Furthermore, Horseradish peroxidase (HRP) was immobilized on the TPDT-SWNT electronic film, and the enzymatic detection of hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂) was demonstrated without mediators. The detection of H₂O₂ in the negative potential range (-0.4 V vs. Ag/AgCl) was achieved by direct electron transfer of heme-based enzymes that were immobilized on the TPDT-SWNT electronic film. The SWNT-based biosensor exhibited a wide detection range of H₂O₂ from 10 µM to 10 mM. The HRP-doped SWNT electronic film achieved a high sensitivity of 342 ㎛A/mM·cm² and excellent selectivity against a variety of redox-active interfering substances, such as ascorbic acid, uric acid, and acetaminophen.