Giving back: a win-win plan of action for compounding pharmacists.

Giving back to local communities guides the next generation, introduces new pharmacists to niche markets, and ensures that compounding pharmacists continue to stay on top of a rapidly developing field. The author discusses successful strategies that increase relevance within the community and cultivate opportunities for growth and innovation: opening pharmacies to the community, reaching out to local school districts, pharmacy schools, and professional organizations, and supporting appropriate charitable causes.

Oral mucosal immunotherapy using a toothpaste delivery system for the treatment of allergic rhinitis.

Oral Mucosal Immunotherapy is a novel method of delivering allergenic extracts to the tolerogenic oropharyngeal mucosa using a compounded toothpaste vehicle. This article describes three cases where individuals with seasonal allergic rhinitis demonstrated symptom improvement as well as decreased skin reactivity after using Oral Mucosal Immunotherapy in a pre-seasonal and co-seasonal fashion.

Certification of sterile equipment and facilities: what pharmacists need to know.

Although it is common knowledge that all sterile compounding pharmacies must have their equipment and facilities certified and calibrated every six months, it is not as clear what is expected of pharmacists. There is currently a disconnect between the certification companies and the pharmacists. As pharmacists, we look to the certification companies as the experts and rely upon them accordingly. The certification companies look upon the pharmacy to know which testing is required. It is the role of the pharmacist to know which tests are necessary and how they are to be interpreted correctly. The end goal of certification testing is to prove that the standards listed in United States Pharmacopeia Chapter <797> are met. Testing requirements can vary from state to state. A few of the most commonly required sterile certification and calibration tests will be discussed in this article.

Emerging therapies in allergic conjunctivitis and dry eye syndrome.

INTRODUCTION: Inflammatory disorders of the anterior surface of the eye consist of a spectrum of disorders that range from ocular allergy, dry eye syndrome (DES), and various infections. They exhibit similar pathological profiles, but have divergent immune mechanisms with some overlap. A number of novel treatments are currently being studied that capitalize on the growing understanding of underlying immunopathophysiology. AREAS COVERED: The goal of this review is to examine the emerging pipeline for noninfectious inflammatory disorders of the anterior surface of the eye - primarily allergic conjunctivitis (AC) and DES - in light of the recent basic science discoveries that have fueled their development. Novel molecules for the treatment of AC and DES from clinicaltrials.gov as well as recently filed patents for new molecular entities were reviewed from PUBMED and OVID. EXPERT OPINION: Significant progress toward targeted treatments for AC and DES has become increasingly reliant on understanding the immunomodulatory and inflammatory mechanisms of the conjunctiva.

Ophthalmic antihistamines and H1-H4 receptors.

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: Antihistamines exert pharmacologic effects by binding to four histamine receptors (H1-H4) at different affinities, producing variable effects depending on the receptor they predominantly bind to. This review's purpose is to determine the relative potency of antihistamines by comparing their binding affinities to these receptors. Studies on binding affinities of antihistamines to histamine receptors were reviewed and the dissociation constant for inhibitor binding (Ki) analyzed to determine the most and least potent antihistamine for each receptor. RECENT FINDINGS: We retrieved the binding affinities for nineteen antihistamines. For H1 receptors, pyrilamine exhibited the highest affinity (Ki = 0.8 nM), and thioperamide the lowest (Ki = 280, 000 nM). For H2 receptors, ranitidine exhibited the highest affinity (Ki = 187 nM), and olopatadine the lowest (Ki = 100 ,000 nM). For the recently discovered H3 and H4 receptors, thioperamide exhibited the highest affinity (Ki = 1.1 nM), and olopatadine exhibited the lowest (Ki = 79 ,400 nM), to H3. Data on binding affinities to the H4 receptor exist for: ketotifen, pheniramine, ranitidine, cimetidine and thioperamide. Of these, thioperamide exhibited the highest affinity (Ki = 27 nM), whereas cimetidine and ranitidine exhibited the lowest affinity (Ki = >10, 000 nM) for H4 receptors. SUMMARY: This review summarizes the relative potency of antihistamines based on their binding affinities to the four histamine receptors. Although data on binding affinities of antihistamines to the H4 receptor are sparse, it is apparent that further research on these histamine subtypes may open new venues for more direct treatment with a higher therapeutic efficacy on allergic disorders including those affecting the ocular surface.

Case report: clindamycin hydrochloride 1% otic suspension in the management of otitis externa in a canine.

Case reports, which are a report of a patient's symptoms, diagnosis, treatment, and follow up, offer great assistance to a practitioner and compounding pharmacist in the oftentimes "trial and error" procedures of treating a patient that presents with a hard-to-treat diagnosis. Case reports serve as a footprint to success in many cases. This article discusses the case of an 11-year-old, neutered, male Bassett Hound with a diagnosis of otitis externa bacterial infection.

Case report: management of secondary hypertension in a feline with the use of transdermal prazosin.

Case reports, which are a report of a patient's symptoms, diagnosis treatment, and follow up, offer great assistance to a practitioner and compounding pharmacist in the oftentimes "trial and error" procedures of treating a patient that presents with a hard-to-treat diagnosed with hypertension secondary to polycstic kidney disease.