Pediatric pharmacotherapeutic education: current status and recommendations to fill the growing need.

The Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education and the Canadian Council for Accreditation of Pharmacy Programs state that their respective programs should provide a curriculum appropriate to produce general practitioners of pharmacy. Millions of prescriptions are written for infants and children each year, and relatively few pharmacists practice in environments devoid of pediatric patients. To fulfill the stated mandate, professional pharmacy curricula must include adequate content dedicated to pharmaceutical care of the pediatric patient. Current pediatric curricula are inadequate and must be improved. Pediatric topics should be introduced early in the curriculum to increase students' awareness of the special needs of this vulnerable population. Other recommendations include the provision at least 25 hours of didactic instruction in core pediatric areas and at least one pediatric clinical rotation to all students. Pharmaceutical care of pediatric patients can also be improved by offering pediatric rotations to all pharmacy practice residents and encouraging their participation. However, a change in attitude may be most important. The contention that pediatric pharmacy practice is an isolated subspecialty can no longer be supported.

Instructional scaffolding to improve students' skills in evaluating clinical literature.

OBJECTIVE: To implement and assess the effectiveness of an activity to teach pharmacy students to critically evaluate clinical literature using instructional scaffolding and a Clinical Trial Evaluation Rubric. DESIGN: The literature evaluation activity centered on a single clinical research article and involved individual, small group, and large group instruction, with carefully structured, evidence-based scaffolds and support materials centered around 3 educational themes: (1) the reader's awareness of text organization, (2) contextual/background information and vocabulary, and (3) questioning, prompting, and self-monitoring (metacognition). ASSESSMENT: Students initially read the article, scored it using the rubric, and wrote an evaluation. Students then worked individually using a worksheet to identify and define 4 to 5 vocabulary/concept knowledge gaps. They then worked in small groups and as a class to further improve their skills. Finally, they assessed the same article using the rubric and writing a second evaluation. Students' rubric scores for the article decreased significantly from a mean pre-activity score of 76.7% to a post-activity score of 61.7%, indicating that their skills in identifying weaknesses in the article's study design had improved. CONCLUSION: Use of instructional scaffolding in the form of vocabulary supports and the Clinical Trial Evaluation Rubric improved students' ability to critically evaluate a clinical study compared to lecture-based coursework alone.

Withdrawal from lorazepam in critically ill children.

BACKGROUND: Sedatives are used in critically ill children to facilitate mechanical ventilation. Although tolerance and withdrawal are associated with use of sedatives, information about withdrawal from benzodiazepines in children is limited. OBJECTIVE: To document the occurrence of lorazepam withdrawal in critically ill children and identify predictors for the development of withdrawal. METHODS: This prospective, investigational, open-label study enrolled pediatric patients receiving a continuous infusion of lorazepam for at least 72 hours. The lorazepam dosage was tapered in a uniform fashion over 6 days by decreasing the total daily dose by 50% every other day on 3 occasions; it was then discontinued. The occurrence of withdrawal from lorazepam was determined by pediatric intensive care unit attending physicians based on clinical judgment. Patients were assessed for withdrawal twice daily beginning 48 hours after the initiation of the lorazepam taper. Assessments were continued for 72 hours after lorazepam discontinuation or until the patient experienced withdrawal, whichever came first. Patient demographic, sedative dosing, and lorazepam serum concentration data were collected to identify risk factors for withdrawal. RESULTS: Twenty-nine patients completed the study. They received lorazepam for a median duration of about 21 days, and withdrawal occurred in 7 patients. There were no significant differences in demographic variables, lorazepam dosage or other sedative therapy, or lorazepam serum concentrations between patients with withdrawal and those without withdrawal. No predictors of withdrawal were identified. CONCLUSIONS: Withdrawal occurred in 24% of critically ill children receiving long-term sedation from lorazepam. Risk factors for withdrawal are unknown.

Opioid withdrawal in critically ill neonates.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the occurrence of and risk factors for opioid withdrawal in critically ill neonates receiving continuous infusions of fentanyl. DESIGN: A prospective interventional cohort study was conducted in a university hospital neonatal intensive care unit with 19 neonates who received a minimum of 24 hours of fentanyl by continuous infusion. MEASUREMENTS: Fentanyl total dose, duration of infusion, and peak infusion rate were recorded. Patients were evaluated for withdrawal using the Neonatal Abstinence Scoring System of Finnegan. Patients with a score >/=8 were considered to have opioid withdrawal. MAIN RESULTS: Withdrawal was observed in 10 (53%) of 19 neonates. The fentanyl total dose (median 525 vs. 168 micro g/kg, respectively; p = 0.03) and infusion duration (median 10 vs. 7 d, respectively; p = 0.04) were significantly greater in neonates with withdrawal compared to those without withdrawal. A fentanyl total dose >/=415 micro g/kg predicted withdrawal with 70% sensitivity and 78% specificity. A fentanyl infusion duration >/=8 days predicted withdrawal with 90% sensitivity and 67% specificity. The most frequent symptoms of withdrawal were sleeping <3 hours after feeding (81%) and increased muscle tone (55%). In all neonates with withdrawal, onset occurred within 24 hours of fentanyl discontinuation. CONCLUSIONS: Opioid withdrawal occurs frequently in critically ill neonates who receive continuous infusions of fentanyl. Longer infusion duration and higher total dose were associated with withdrawal symptoms.