ABSTRACT
Traditional Chinese medicine(TCM) preparations in medical institutions embody the characteristics of TCM and are the source for the development of new TCM drugs. This study summarizes the current situation, existing problems, and development trends of the TCM preparations in medical institutions in 31 provinces across China. Furthermore, this paper puts forward the development path of new TCM preparations based on the requirements of registration and management regulations of TCM preparations, providing new ideas for promoting the inheritance, innovation, and development of TCM.
Subject(s)
Biological Products , Drugs, Chinese Herbal , Medicine, Chinese Traditional , Drugs, Chinese Herbal/therapeutic use , Research , ChinaABSTRACT
Traditional Chinese medicine(TCM) preparations in medical institutions, as a unique and important form of preparations in China, have a long history of human use and serve as a bridge between clinical experience prescriptions and new Chinese medicine preparations. The state encourages medical institutions to transform their preparations into new traditional Chinese medicines, emphasizing their role as "incubators". Since the proposal of the traditional Chinese medicine registration and evaluation evidence system with the integration of TCM theory, human use experience(HUE), and clinical experience, the idea of transforming preparations used in medical institutions into new drugs based on HUE has been increasingly valued by drug research and development organizations. In the transformation process, pharmaceutical changes should be concerned from multiple aspects. This paper discusses the pharmaceutical changes and countermeasures based on the transformation of traditional Chinese medicine preparations in medical institutions into new drugs based on HUE from the aspects of excipients, dosage forms, production technology, production scale, packaging materials and containers, production sites, and registration standards. It is emphasized that scientific decisions should be made according to the characteristics and clinical needs of drugs to ensure the stability of drug quality. The impacts of pharmaceutical changes on drug quality should be objectively assessed based on appropriate evaluation indexes and detection methods. The layout should be carried out in advance, and the key pharmaceutical information of the preparations should be kept stable, so as to underpin the transformation of traditional Chinese medicine preparations in medical institutions into new drugs based on HUE.
Subject(s)
Drugs, Chinese Herbal , Medicine, Chinese Traditional , Humans , Drugs, Chinese Herbal/therapeutic use , Reference Standards , Quality Control , Drug Compounding , Pharmaceutical PreparationsABSTRACT
The development of traditional Chinese medicine(TCM) preparations as an incubator for new drugs in medical institutions has flourished, while an evaluation index system remains to be established for comprehensively assessing the development value of these prescriptions. This study established an item pool through literature research, employed the Delphi method to determine the content of evaluation indexes, and adopted the superiority chart to determine the weight of each index. Two-level evaluation index system for the development value of TCM preparations in medical institutions was established, which included 7 first-level items and 36 se-cond-level items, demonstrating scientific validity. The first-level items(weight) were inheritance(10.61%), effectiveness(23.22%), safety(22.71%), innovation(13.21%), economy(10.00%), suitability(8.57%), and accessibility(11.68%). The top three second-level items in terms of weight distribution were adverse reaction monitoring(6.73%), evidence of therapeutic effect(5.71%), and clinical response rate(4.75%). The bottom three second-level items were production advantages(0.86%), medicinal dosage(0.48%), and medicinal smell or taste(0.18%). The content validity of the established system was assessed, which revealed that the index system was reliable, with the overall and average content validity indexes of 0.47 and 0.90, respectively. Furthermore, the established evaluation index system was used to evaluate six TCM preparations in a city-level hospital of TCM in Sichuan Province, which demonstrated that the system had operability. The results indicate that the evaluation index system is scientific, reliable, and operable, providing a reference for developers to selectively develop TCM preparations in medical institutions. In practical application, the system can be adjusted regarding the index weights according to actual conditions.
Subject(s)
Drugs, Chinese Herbal , Medicine, Chinese Traditional , Medicine, Chinese Traditional/standards , Drugs, Chinese Herbal/standards , Drugs, Chinese Herbal/analysis , Drugs, Chinese Herbal/chemistry , HumansABSTRACT
Traditional Chinese medicine(TCM) preparations in medical institutions are an important source of research and development(R&D) of TCM new drug. With years of usage in therapy, these preparations' safety and effectiveness have generally been validated in clinic. However, there are still a few disadvantages in TCM new medicine development, such as similar prescriptions, excessive prescription ingredients, too broad clinical orientation, lack of solid clinical data, issue in pharmaceutical quality control, and intellectual property disputes. Nowadays, the Three-Combined Evaluation System has strengthened policy support for the new TCM R&D. In order to improve the success rate of TCM R&D, due to the difficulties within, this paper proposes the process of transforming TCM preparations in medical institutions into new TCM and advocates the evaluation for druggability based on Human Use Experience(HUE). The potencial preparations ought to follow traditional Chinese Medical theory, sufficient HUE data in indication, syndrome type of TCM, target population, usage, dosage, and course of treatment are required. Particular attention should be paid to the source, evolution, and improvement process of prescription, and evaluate the dosage, ingredients, and herb resources of prescription. To assess the feasibility of mass production, it is necessary to determine whether the pharmaceutical process is mostly consistent with the new drug and whether the dosage form is reasonable. By summarizing the clinical application of the preparations, the whole picture of its clinical application would be reveal as much as possible. It is beneficial to evaluate its clinical value and R&D prospect. In consideration of the lack of clinical safety data of preparations, safety profile needs to be collected according to the prescription. The quality of clinical data needs to be evaluated by focusing on the integrity and accuracy of data to reduce bias and confusion. Significant care should be paid to intellectual property protection to avoid legal disputes.
Subject(s)
Drugs, Chinese Herbal , Medicine, Chinese Traditional , Drugs, Chinese Herbal/therapeutic use , Humans , Prescriptions , Quality Control , SyndromeABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE To establish the project approval evaluation system for traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) preparations in medical institutions guided by new drug conversion, to improve the success rate of approval for TCM preparations in medical institutions and lay the foundation for the later drug conversion. METHODS Research and development team used the literature research method and brainstorming method to list and organize relevant elements of project evaluation and determine the initial indicator system. Experts were consulted using the Delphi method to confirm the evaluation index. The weights were calculated based on the proportion of importance scores for each indicator and assigned specific scores to each item. The indicator system was used to evaluate 31 TCM preparations applied for filing by various departments of our hospital from April to July 2023. RESULTS After two rounds of 17 experts’ consultation, the final TCM preparation system included five primary indicators, i.e. theoretical basis, clinical research foundation, pharmaceutical foundation, prescription, and clinical value, as well as 17 secondary indicators including prescription source, traditional Chinese medicine theory, clinical positioning and so on. Human experience was considered as the item which would be rejected as one vote. Based on the above indicator system, our hospital further improved the filing and project approval process for TCM preparations in medical institutions. Among the 31 TCM preparations applied for filing by various departments from April to July 2023, 8 TCM preparations with a score ≥65 were selected for development. CONCLUSIONS The evaluation system is objective, comprehensive, and highly operable. It is suitable for the selection of TCM preparations in medical institutions before research and development.