Key Articles and Guidelines in the Management of Pericardial Syndromes.

Over the past two decades, emerging literature has shaped the management of pericardial syndromes and has evolved abundantly towards the creation of European guidelines for the diagnosis and management of pericardial diseases. However, since the publication of the European guidelines in 2015, more data surrounding the management of pericardial syndromes have been published. Comprehensive reference materials with the most updated literature are warranted and can be pivotal in helping pharmacists make evidence-based and clinical decisions for patients diagnosed with pericardial syndromes.

Dofetilide Dose Reductions and Discontinuation in Obese Compared with Nonobese Patients.

Dofetilide is an antiarrhythmic agent and primarily eliminated renally. Initial dosing is determined by creatinine clearance, calculated by total body weight in the Cockcroft-Gault equation. To date, there is no evidence comparing the dosing of dofetilide in obese versus nonobese patients.

Development of a pharmacy resident rotation to expand decentralized clinical pharmacy services.

Purpose: The development of a pharmacy resident rotation to expand decentralized clinical pharmacy services is described.

Summary: In an effort to align with the initiatives proposed within the ASHP Practice Advancement Initiative, the department of pharmacy at Cleveland Clinic, a 1,400-bed academic, tertiary acute care medical center in Cleveland, Ohio, established a goal to provide decentralized clinical pharmacy services for 100% of patient care units within the hospital. Patient care units that previously had no decentralized pharmacy services were evaluated to identify opportunities for expansion.

The use of anti-factor Xa monitoring in a selection of patients receiving enoxaparin at a large academic medical center.

Therapeutic enoxaparin is commonly used over heparin because of its favorable pharmacokinetic profile and ease of administration. Monitoring of the anticoagulant response, if necessary, is done with anti-factor Xa levels. Currently, it is suggested that monitoring may be beneficial in patients who are overweight and those with renal dysfunction.