• Korean Journal of Clinical Pharmacy
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• v.27 no.3
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• pp.143-149
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• 2017

Background: L-asparaginase (L-ASP) is a critical agent for the treatment of acute lymphoblastic leukemia and lymphoma, which is associated with serious toxicities including hypersensitivity, pancreatitis and thrombosis. Methods: To evaluate the toxicity of L-ASP in real clinical settings, we included the patients with L-ASP adverse drug reactions (ADRs) reported in a regional pharmacovigilance center of Seoul St. Mary's hospital from January 2014 to December 2015. Results: A total of 83 cases of L-ASP related ADRs were reported in 54 patients. Of these 83 cases, 65 cases (78.3%, 65/83) were spontaneously reported and 18 cases (21.7%, 18/83) were detected by further medical records review. Of the patients with ADRs, pediatric patients accounted for 83.3% of the cases (45/54) and median age was 9 years. The most common clinical manifestations of ADRs were hematology manifestations (31.3%, 26/83), followed by hepatobiliary manifestations (18.1%, 15/83). Thirty-four serious ADRs were reported in 19 patients. The sserious ADR group showed significantly longer hospitalization and higher rate of discontinuation of L-ASP than the non-serious ADR group (p = 0.005, 0.03). The most common clinical manifestations of serious ADRs were hepatobiliary manifestations (41.2%, 14/34). In total, 8 cases (9.6%, 8/83) of unlabeled ADRs were identified. They were serious ADRs. Conclusion: We identified unlabeled serious ADRs of L-ASP. Also, correlations were observed between serious ADRs and length of hospitalization, discontinuation rate respectively. Further investigations and developed spontaneous ADR reporting systems are needed to evaluate these correlations.

• The Journal of Korean Medicine
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• v.36 no.1
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• pp.45-60
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• 2015

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to understand the status of reporting and characteristics of adverse drug reactions (ADRs) induced by herbal drugs and to make a suggestion for the domestic pharmacovigilance system on herbal medicine. Methods: We carried out a hospital-based observational study at Dongguk University Ilsan Oriental Hospital from April 2012 to December 2014. We reviewed all the herbal-drug-associated ADRs reports registered to the spontaneous ADR reporting system in electronic medical records of the hospital in the period. Results: We found out 101 reports including 163 herbal-drug-associated ADRs from 97 patients. Females (69.3%) outnumbered males and the most frequent age group was the 50s (44, 27.0%). No serious adverse event was observed. The most commonly reported ADR was gastro-intestinal system disorders (68, 41.5%) followed by skin-related disorders (42, 25.8%). Diarrhea (29, 17.8%) was the most frequently referred clinical manifestation. Most ADRs were induced by internal medicines (160, 98.2%) including manufactured (36, 22.1%) and self-prepared decoction (160, 76.1%). The pairs of Igi-hwan-diarrhea, gamiboa-tang-vomiting, and Magnoliae Flos-gastro-intestinal-system-related ADRs were observed twice each and the others appeared only once. Conclusions: We propose Korean government to take an initiative in national pharmacovigilance system for herbal medicine. To perform the surveillance on herbal drugs, the Association of Korean Medicine (AKOM) should set up a nationwide network by designating centers connecting the Korean medical hospitals, local Korean medicine clinics, and the public health centers. The government and AKOM should also educate and encourage them to understand the pharmacovigilance system and report the ADRs actively.

• Journal of Veterinary Science
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• v.24 no.6
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• pp.77.1-77.7
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• 2023

Antibiotics are known to be able to cause hypersensitivity reactions through various mechanisms. We present a case of drug-induced immune thrombocytopenia (DITP) and anaphylactic shock occurring simultaneously in a dog after the administration of two classes of antibiotics, namely trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole (TMP-SMX) and amoxicillin-clavulanate (AMC). The patient recovered completely from DITP on discontinuation of TMP-SMX and the anaphylactic shock caused by AMC was treated with intensive care. DITP is a rare adverse drug reaction (ADR), and anaphylactic shock is a life-threatening ADR. This is the first case report of a dog manifesting two types of hypersensitivity reactions caused by two antibiotics.

• Korean Journal of Clinical Pharmacy
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• v.29 no.2
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• pp.125-132
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• 2019

Objective: To examine the perceptions and attitudes toward spontaneous adverse drug reaction (ADR) reporting system among community pharmacists and identify factors that influence reporting, by implementing a survey. Methods: A structured questionnaire was developed and distributed online. Request for the survey was posted on the website of pharmacy's billing program, and the survey was conducted for 8 days. We collected the participants' response on their work environment, experience of ADR reporting, and their perception and attitude on the reporting system. Multivariate logistic regression was used to evaluate factors influencing ADR reporting. Results: A total of 382 pharmacists participated in the survey. Significant contributing factors for reporting level were age (odds ratio [OR], 0.90; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.84-0.96), knowledge of reporting method (OR, 53.56; 95% CI, 9.10-315.41), installation of reporting program (OR, 31.92; 95% CI, 4.16-244.75), and encouragement from the Korean pharmaceutical association (OR, 4.13; 95% CI, 1.11-15.35). Regarding the attitude toward spontaneous ADR reporting system, 'lack of time for reporting' (OR, 0.29; 95% CI, 0.15-0.53) and 'complexity of reporting procedure' (OR, 0.51; 95% CI, 0.31-0.84), were associated with a low likelihood of reporting. Conclusion: Our results indicated that the knowledge of ADR reporting method, installation of the reporting program, and encouragement from the Korean Pharmaceutical Association contribute to active reporting. It is necessary to simplify the reporting method, make the ADR reporting program user-friendly, and provide educational interventions to increase participation in spontaneous reporting by the community pharmacists.

• Korean Journal of Clinical Pharmacy
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• v.28 no.2
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• pp.154-157
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• 2018

Levosulpiride is one of the most frequently prescribed medicines in Korea. An adverse drug reaction (ADR) after taking levosulpiride was reported at a community pharmacy in Korea. A 31-year-old woman reported the symptoms of lactation and amenorrhea after taking levosulpiride; an evaluation of whether these symptoms were caused by the medication was therefore necessary. Several tools can be used to determine if the ADR resulted from the administered drug or other factors, including the World Health Organization-Uppsala Monitoring Centre (WHO-UMC) criteria, the Naranjo scale, and the Korean causality assessment algorithm (Ver. 2). The causality was evaluated as "possible" by the WHO-UMC and Naranjo scales, but as "probable" by the Korean causality assessment algorithm (Ver. 2). In conclusion, the information provided did not indicate definite causality and there were slight differences in the results obtained from each assessment method.

• Korean Journal of Clinical Pharmacy
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• v.21 no.3
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• pp.237-242
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• 2011

This study measures seriousness of adverse drug reactions (ADRs) among Korean physicians and pharmacists using two times surveys based on Delphi technique. Each participant scored 20 ADR terms on a scale of one to ten (10 being the most serious). We repeated the exercise for the 49 first survey respondents and 32 re-evaluated score. We compared the results of our survey with those of WHO CIOMS (Council for International Organization of Medical Sciences) working groups members conducted in 1995. The overall mean ADR seriousness score was 6.49 for Koreans and 5.12 for WHO CIOMS members, presenting Korean experts perceived more seriously for each ADR. Mean score changes for the same respondents showed similar trends regardless of access to the first survey results. There were no statistically significant score differences between the physicians and the pharmacists. The high consensus of seriousness for each ADR between the Korean experts and the WHO CIOMS members implies that the similar results are reproducible, suggesting the possibility of developing standardized tools for measuring the seriousness of individual ADRs in the future.

• Journal of Physiology & Pathology in Korean Medicine
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• v.18 no.4
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• pp.957-964
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• 2004

Herbal medicines are increasingly used to treat various diseases and lots of studies have been reported that they had benefits in treating and preventing of diseases. But organic toxicity is increasingly recognized as herbal medicines become more popular in industrialized countries. Some herbal products potentially benefit people with lots of diseases, however these benefits remain generally unproved in humans, and a greater awareness for potential adverse effects is required. A herb containing a wide variety of, mostly unknown, substances may well include some with unwanted effects. This review focuses on emerging organic toxicities that have been observed associated with various herbal preparations involving the liver, kidney, and heart, and patterns of organ injury, potential risk factors for organic toxicities. In addition to the potential for organic toxicities, drug drug interactions between herbal medicines and conventional agents may affect the efficacy and safety of concurrent medical therapy. Appropriate reporting and regulatory system to monitor herbal toxicity are required, in conjunction with ongoing scientific evaluation of the potential benefits of phytotherapy.

• Korean Journal of Clinical Pharmacy
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• v.24 no.1
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• pp.39-44
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• 2014

Purpose: To investigate adverse drug reactions (ADR) and causative drugs in the elderly 65 years of age or older, using Korean spontaneous reporting adverse events reporting database from June 2009 to December 2010. Methods: We estimated the association between ADRs and implicated medications by calculating a proportional reporting ratio (PRR), reporting odds ratio (ROR), and information component (IC). We reexamined the most frequently implicated medications and ADRs, and the seriousness of ADRs. Then, we assessed reports and concordant rate of ADRs due to medications designated as "high-risk" in elderly by 2012 healthcare effectiveness data and information set (HEDIS) or "potentially inappropriate" by 2012 American Geriatrics Society updated Beers criteria for potentially inappropriate medications (PIMs). Results: Among 15,484 elderly reports, data-mining analysis by PRR, ROR and IC showed that 421 drug-ADR pairs were detected as signals (3,189). The most frequently reported ADR and causative drug were urticaria (470) and contrast media agents (647), respectively. One hundred eighty nine ADR cases were graded as serious. Twenty-two kinds of high-risk medications were shown to be implicated in only 0.9% of ADRs. Only thirty-nine cases were consistent with 2012 Beers criteria or HEDIS. Conclusion: These results suggest that management of the other medications including contrast media agents as well as close monitoring of PIMs are necessary for reducing ADRs in the elderly.

• The Korean journal of internal medicine
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• v.33 no.6
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• pp.1203-1209
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• 2018

Background/Aims: Adverse drug reaction (ADR) is an appreciably harmful or unpleasant reaction, resulting from an intervention related to the use of a medicinal product. The present study was conducted in order to monitor the frequency and severity of ADR during antimicrobial therapy of septicemia. Methods: A prospective, observational, and noncomparative study was conducted over a period of 6 months on patients of septicemia admitted at a university hospital. Naranjo algorithm scale was used for causality assessment. Severity assessment was done by Hartwig severity scale. Results: ADRs in selected hospitalized patients of septicemia was found to be in 26.5% of the study population. During the study period, 12 ADRs were confirmed occurring in 9, out of 34 admitted patients. Pediatric patients experienced maximum ADRs, 44.4%. Females experienced a significantly higher incidence of ADRs, 66.7%. According to Naranjo's probability scale, 8.3% of ADRs were found to be definite, 58.3% as probable, and 33.3% as possible. A higher proportion of these ADRs, 66.7% were preventable in nature. Severity assessment showed that more than half of ADRs were moderate. Teicoplanin was found to be the commonest antimicrobial agent associated with ADRs, followed by gemifloxacin and ofloxacin. Conclusions: The incidence and severity of ADRs observed in the present study was substantially high indicating the need of extra vigilant during the antimicrobial therapy of septicemia.

• Korean Journal of Clinical Pharmacy
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• v.21 no.4
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• pp.311-318
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• 2011

Misinformation and inappropriate use of medication has become one of the most pressing concerns in drug safety. The purpose of this study was to survey public perception on drug safety as well as the channels most relied upon providing such information. The survey was performed for patients or their families visiting pharmacies in a local city in Korea. Analysis was performed from 367 respondents to the survey. The contents of this survey revealed that consumers were aware of the fact that medications should not be taken at any higher dosage or more often than directed by their prescriptions. The survey revealed a general awareness that symptoms might not be relieved immediately by their medications. However, the perception that there could be adverse drug reaction (ADR) at therapeutic dose was low except among the young or highly educated members. Respondents recognized that skin rashes were the most whereas drowsiness was the least common ADR symptom. There was a high awareness of drug-food or drug-drug interactions except in the case of certain nutraceuticals. Doctors and pharmacists were ranked as the most reliable resources to the consumer for providing drug related information. However, public relations or education programs were in need since there were still not negligible numbers of consumers depending on personal experience rather than health professionals.