The impact of old versus new antiepileptic drugs on costs and patient reported outcomes among older adults.

The aim of this prospective questionnaire-based cross-sectional study was to examine whether the new generation of Antiepileptic drugs (AEDs) with higher acquisition cost generate lower adverse effects than the old AEDs among a sample of 102 Arabic-speaking older adults (60 years of age or older) with seizure disorders. The mean scores of the Arabic version of the Liverpool Adverse Events Profile (LAEP), which assessed the adverse effects of the AEDs, did not differ between patients taking the old and new generations of AEDs. Despite their 4-fold higher cost, the new generation of AEDs were not characterized by lower LAEP scores of adverse effects. However, higher LAEP scores were associated with better health literacy. In conclusion, the use of new AEDs was not associated with lower self-reported adverse effects scores among Arabic-speaking older adults with seizure disorders despite their higher acquisition costs.

Advancing pharmaceuticals and patient safety in Saudi Arabia: A 2030 vision initiative.

Low-quality medicines deliver sub-optimal clinical outcomes and waste precious health resources. It is important to ensure that public funds are spent on healthcare technologies that meet national regulatory bodies such as the Saudi Food and Drug Authority (SFDA), quality standards for safety, efficacy, and quality. Medicines quality is a complicated combination of pre-market regulatory specifications, appropriate sourcing of ingredients (active pharmaceutical ingredient (API), excipients, etc.), manufacturing processes, healthcare ecosystem communications, and regular and robust pharmacovigilance practices. A recent conference in Riyadh, sponsored by King Saud University, sought to discuss these issues and develop specific policy recommendations for the Saudi 2030 Vision plan. This and other efforts will require more and more creative educational programs for physicians, pharmacists, hospitals, and patients, and, most importantly evolving regulations on quality standards and oversight by Saudi health authorities.

Drug shortages in Saudi Arabia: Root causes and recommendations.

Drug shortages are a multifaceted problem that has been recurring in Saudi Arabia over the past decade with its significant negative impact on patient care. However, there is a dearth of evidence about possible domestic reasons, if any, behind this recurring problem. Recently, the Pharmacy Education Unit at King Saud University College of Pharmacy has called for a meeting with multiple stakeholders from academia, pharmaceutical care, pharmaceutical industry, purchasing and planning, and regulatory bodies to unveil the root domestic causes of the drug shortages in the Kingdom. Four major topics were used to guide the discussion in this meeting, including: current situation of drug shortages in Saudi Arabia, major factors contributing to drug shortages, challenges and obstacles to improve drug supply, and stakeholders' recommendations to manage drug shortages. The meeting was audio-recorded and transcribed into verbatim by five authors. The text was then reviewed and analyzed to identify different themes by the first and third authors. Multiple causes were identified and several recommendations were proposed. The main domestic causes of drug shortages that were explored in this study included poor medication supply chain management, lack of government regulation that mandates early notification of drug shortages, a government procurement policy that does not keep pace with the changes in the pharmaceutical market, low profit margins of some essential drugs, weak and ineffective law-violation penalties against pharmaceutical companies and licensed drug importers and distributors, and overdependence on drug imports. The participants have also proposed multiple recommendations to address drug shortages. Policy makers should consider these factors that contribute to drug shortages in Saudi Arabia as well as the recommendations when designing future initiatives and interventions to prevent drug shortages.