Appropriateness of Medication Prescribing in Hospitalized Older Adults in a Tertiary Teaching Hospital in the Philippines: A Cross-Sectional Study.

Background: The prescribing of potentially inappropriate medication (PIM) is a major health problem among older adults because of the high risk of adverse drug events. The number of older adults in the Philippines is increasing, and little is known about medication prescribing in this population.

Objectives: Our objective was to determine the prevalence of and factors associated with PIM in older patients admitted to a tertiary teaching hospital.

Health and environmental assessment of mercury exposure in a gold mining community in Western Mindanao, Philippines.

The small-scale gold mining activities using mercury began in the late 1980s in Sibutad, Western Mindanao. It is located very near the Murcielagos Bay with tailing ponds directly discharging into bodies of water. This cross-sectional study aimed to determine the health and environmental effects of gold mining activities on the community.

Correlation between blood ethylenethiourea and thyroid gland disorders among banana plantation workers in the Philippines.

Ethylenebisdithiocarbamates (EBDCs) are metabolized into ethylenethiourea (ETU), a possible human carcinogen and an antithyroid compound. In this study our goal was to correlate ETU levels with the incidence of thyroid gland disorders among banana plantation workers exposed to EBDC. We randomly selected 57 directly exposed workers and 31 indirectly exposed workers from four banana plantations and 43 workers from an organic farm; all subjects underwent complete medical examinations and laboratory tests.