Autologous serum eye drops for severe dry eye syndrome in a patient with chronic graft-versus-host disease: a case report.

We present the case of a 49-year-old woman with severe dry eye syndrome caused by chronic graft-versus-host disease that developed after an allogeneic hematopoietic transplant to treat acute myelogenous leukemia. After the use of commercially manufactured products for the treatment of dry eye failed to relieve her photosensitivity, blurred. vision, and severe bilateral ocular pain, she benefitted significantly from therapy with compounded autologous serum eye drops.

Complying with Occupational Safety and Health Administration regulations: a guide for compounding pharmacists.

In the compounding pharmacy, compliance with Occupational Safety and Health Administration regulations is essential to protect employees and customers from exposure to hazardous substances and a dangerous environment, to avert heavy fines and penalties levied for noncompliance, and to fulfill the moral obligation of pharmacists to do no harm. Without adequate vigilance, compounders are vulnerable to lapses in adherence to Occupational Safety and Health Administration requirements, the results of which can be dire in a climate of increased scrutiny about the safety and integrity of pharmaceutical compounding. Proactively addressing necessary compliance with essential safety regulations can only benefit compounders and their staff and clients, and guidance from an expert in Occupational Safety and Health Administration requirements can be a key factor in accomplishing that goal.

Preventing nonmicrobiologic airborne contamination in the compounding pharmacy: ensuring a safe environment for compounders, staff, and clients.

Preventing and minimizing exposure to nonmicrobiologic airborne contaminants in a compounding pharmacy protects the health of pharmacy staff and clients. The inhalation of hazardous substances has been linked to the development of diseases and disorders that range from cancer to infertility. Although a workplace environmental exposure level has been established for some antibiotics at the time of this writing there were no exposure limits recommended by the National Institue for Occupational Safety and Health or permitted by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration for hazardous drugs or pharmaceutical compounds, nor were threshold limit values for those substances specified by the American Conference of Governmental Industrial Hygienists.

Microbial air-sampling equipment, part 2: experiences of compounding pharmacists.

The most recent changes to Chapter 797 of the United States Pharmacopeia-National Formulary initiated an intense controversy about the frequency of cleanroom air sampling that is required to prevent the contamination of sterile preparations. For compounders who must purchase an air sampler to use in the cleanroom, choices abound. This article summarizes discussions from compounding pharmacists and their experiences with air sampling devices.