The Economic Burden of Biological Drugs in Rheumatoid Arthritis Treatment.

Objectives: This article aimed to count and compare treatment's direct (only biological drugs) and indirect (loss of productivity) costs in patients with rheumatoid arthritis from 2019 to 2021.

Methods: The friction cost approach was used to establish indirect costs. Elasticity factor values and friction period for the Slovak Republic from 2019 to 2021 were determined.

Diazotization titrations in pharmacopoeial quality control of medicines and proposals for their revision in the European Pharmacopoeia.

Based on the data in the Ph. Eur., some other newer pharmacopoeias and published experimental papers propose to revise the text of Ph.

Colour and content of some metals in honey.

The paper highlights the correlations between the results of instrumental colour measurement and the content of certain metals in kinds of honey. Sufficiently close correlations may lead to the development of procedures for the rapid determination of the content of these metals in honey by colour measurement without the need for more demanding sample preparation.

Contribution to the concept of polypharmacy II. Prescription and use of medicines.

The study defines the basic terminological structure associated with the concepts of prescribing and medication use in relation to polypharmacy. Correctly naming the current prescription or use of a medication by a particular patient allows for the selection of an appropriate change to minimize the medication burden. The aim remains to maintain the desired therapeutic outcomes with an improved quality of life.

Contribution to the concept of polypharmacy I. Etymological notes and characteristics.

The contribution captures three basic concepts of the term polypharmacy. The analysis of four bibliographic databases demonstrates the importance of the correct and uniform use of terminology. It also approximates the most common numerical expression of the level of polypharmacy and the most common extended terms of polypharmacy.

Colour and content of some biologically active substances in honey.

This paper highlights the correlations between instrumental measurements of colour and the content of some biologically active organic compounds (especially phenolics and flavonoids) in honey. Sufficiently close correlations may lead to the development of procedures for rapid determination of the content of these substances in honey by colour measurement without the need for more demanding sample preparation.

Colour and antioxidant activity of honey.

The paper highlights the relationships between the results of instrumental colour measurement and the results of the determination of the antioxidant activity of honey (especially by DPPH and FRAP). The sufficiently close correlations show that once verified, supplemented by regression analysis and calibration, they may find application in the rapid determination of the antioxidant activity of honey.

The role of individuals receiving health care - terminological notes.

The overview study characterizes the roles of individuals receiving health care: healthy person, patient, client, health care recipient/user, consumer/customer, and insured person. It outlines the rights and obligations of the recipients of care.

Specific nature of medicines and value of medicines.

Medicines are not ordinary consumer or industrial goods but goods of a specific nature. The article provides an overview of the fundamental characteristics that distinguish medicines from common consumer goods. Another essential attribute of the term medicine is its values (clinical, economic, human), which form a crucial concept of the medicine category.

Friction cost approach methodology in pharmacoeconomic analyses.

The use of a societal perspective in pharmacoeconomic analyses is a widely discussed topic. One of the fundamental problems of using the social perspective is the inconsistency of indirect costs calculation. We searched published articles on the use and differences of Human capital approach (HCA) and Friction cost approach (FCA) methods using the Web of Science database using keywords.

Colour and content of some biologically active substances in natural products and products of natural origin.

The paper draws attention to the correlations between the results of instrumental colour measurements and the content of some biologically active organic substances (carotenoids, chlorophyll, anthocyanins, curcuminoids, etc.) in natural products and products of natural origin. After supplementation by regression analysis and calibration, sufficiently close correlations can lead to the development of procedures for rapid determination of the content of these substances and their groups by colour measurement without more demanding sample treatment.

Spontaneous reports of adverse drug reactions related to oral anticoagulants in the Czech Republic.

Background Oral anticoagulants are established drugs of choice for the prevention and treatment of thromboembolic events. However, monitoring their safety remains warranted. Objective The aim was to analyze spontaneous reports of adverse drug reactions related to oral anticoagulants in the Czech Republic.

Advances in the use of instrumental measurement of colour in the development, production and quality control of drugs, medicinal preparations and pharmaceutical auxiliary substances III.

Colour is an important indicator of the quality of pharmaceuticals, medicinal products and pharmaceutical excipients. The paper summarizes advances in the use of instrumental colour measurement in synthetic medicines and medicines of non-natural origin, their dosage forms and excipients published in 2013-2019.

Theory and practice of pharmacopoeial control of quality of drugs and excipients X. Number of parallel determinations, processing of results and their use in the assessment of the content of active substances and excipients in the European Pharmacopoeia (Ph. Eur.).

In the European Pharmacopoeia (Ph. Eur.) there is no prescribed number of parallel determinations of the content of active substances and excipients.

Theory and practice of pharmacopoeial control of quality of drugs and excipients IX. The problem of tolerance limits for the content of active substances and excipients in the European Pharmacopoeia (Ph. Eur.).

Content tolerance limits should respect the acceptable variation in the content of the active substance or excipient from its production and the variability of the results of the analytical procedure prescribed to determine the content by the appropriate pharmacopoeia. This usually prevails in the active substances and excipients. They should be derived statistically based on the precision of the prescribed analytical method determined by the interlaboratory test.

Theory and practice of pharmacopoeial control of quality of drugs and excipients VIII. End-point indication and other conditions for the titration of primary aromatic amines in the European Pharmacopoeia (Ph. Eur.).

Indication of the equivalence point for the titration of primary aromatic amines (sulphonamides, etc.) with sodium nitrite solution according to Ph. Eur.

On the content of the National part of the Czech Pharmacopoeia 2017.

This paper deals with the content of the national part of the Czech Pharmacopoeia (CP) 2017 in terms of preparation of pharmaceuticals in pharmacies, quantitative methods for controlling their quality and their usable life. Despite the longer time span of the CP 2017 since the CP 2009, compared to the CP 2009 from the CP 2005, the content of the CP 2017 can not be evaluated as a more pronounced shift from the national part of the CP 2009. Some issues of the national section of the CP 2017 are discussed in detail in the paper.

Theory and practice of pharmacopoeial control of the quality of drugs and excipients VII. The colour reference solutions of the European pharmacopoeia (Ph. Eur.).

Data calculations of three different workplaces consistently show that the difference in colour ΔE (CIELAB) of some colour reference solutions according to Ph. Eur. with small colour and purified water are too small.

[Medication adherence to non-vitamin K antagonist oral anticoagulants at non-valvular atrial fibrillation - the literature review].

Medication adherence is a complex problem reflecting variations in terms of medication taking behavior. It is essential in maximizing of the effect and risk minimization of the therapy and health care costs reduction, even in the case of oral anticoagulants (non-vitamin K antagonist oral anticoagulants - NOACs). The aim of this paper was to review the published literature and to discuss results in the field of medication adherence to NOACs in patients with non-valvular atrial fibrillation (NVAF).

[The extent of the burnout syndrome among pharmacists: partial study].

The paper deals with the possibilities of investigating the susceptibility to burnout syndrome in pharmacists and pharmaceutical assistants working in pharmacies. By using the Maslach Burnout Inventory, between November 2015 and January 2016, 53 healthcare professionals were contacted in 11 pharmacies (Brno, Vyškov). The results of the research show that with an increasing length of practice the average EE factor (emotional exhaustion) increases.

[The conscientious objection among pharmacists in the Slovak Republic].

There were two primary objectives of this study: 1. bibliographic analysis of literature on pharmacists and conscientious objection, 2. analysis of present condition and attitudes of pharmacists (n = 100) and pharmacy students (n = 100) towards conscientious objection in the Slovak Republic.

[Medicinal products for human use in veterinary prescription].

The paper deals with the problem of prescription and use of the medicinal products for human use in veterinary medicine. Using partial model analysis describes volume and structure of the prescription of medicinal products for human use in the veterinary practice in the years 2007-2011. Prescriptions included to the study were dispensed in a community pharmacy located in a county town in the Slovak Republic.

[Examples of off-label use of human medicinal preparations in veterinary medicine].

Unlabelled: The paper presents several examples of the use of human medicinal preparations (MP) in veterinary medicine, aiming to compare the indications listed in the summary of product characteristics (SmPC) and the indications in which these MPs are used by veterinarians. For the sake of illustration, two human MPs were selected, which, on the basis of a preceding analysis, were found to be those most widely used in veterinary medicine. A questionnaire survey was employed to find information on the indications in which human MPs are prescribed by veterinarians.

[Continuing/life-long education of pharmacists in the Czech Republic 4th cycle 2008-2011].

The paper discusses the issues of continuing/life-long education of pharmacists in the Czech Republic in the years 2008-2011 (4th cycle). It lists the seminars organized within the framework of continuing education, their number, venues, forms of education, and categories of topics. Altogether 428 professional meetings have taken place, interactive seminars representing more than 50%.

[Perception of body weight by pharmacists and pharmaceutical laboratory assistants in Slovakia II].

The paper presents the results of a questionnaire poll carried out in the workers in pharmacies in the Slovak Republic in the year 2012. A number of 250 respondents (50.8%) were satisfied with their weight, 242 (49.