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Management of chemotherapies is a strategic issue for european healthcare. Dose-banding enables to reduce waiting time of patients in day care units and drug wastage. The aim of this study was to assess the stability of 5-Fluorouracile (5-FU) at standardised rounded doses of 4 and 5 g in MyFuser® portable infusion pump for in-advance preparation. Ten MyFuser® (4 and 5 gr 5-FU added to NaCl 0.9%) were prepared under aseptic conditions and stored at room temperature (23 ± 2 °C) for 28 days then at 30 °C for three days. Physical stability tests were periodically performed: visual and microscopic inspection, pH measurements and optical densities. The concentration of solutions was measured by High Performance Liquid Chromatography/UV detector. Results confirm the stability of 5-FU at selected SRD of 4 g and 5 g with NaCl 0.9% in MyFuser® for at least 28 days at room temperature and three days at 30 °C, allowing in-advance preparation.

In hospitals, a major part of the drugs is administered via the intravenous route. When one wants to evaluate or know the stability of a drug in solution, it is necessary to know several physico-chemical parameters. Several reference works are available to help the hospital pharmacist with this research. However, reading these different sources can make you discover conflicting data. It is therefore necessary at this time to obtain the publications with contradictory results and to read them again. Seven criteria have been identified for judging the quality of a publication on physicochemical stability: full description of equipment, methods and analytical conditions of molecules studied; complete description of the procedures used to validate the analytical method; full indication of time testing and measurement bases or control; documentation on the analytical reproducibility; adequate statistical analysis; appropriate conclusions; appropriate references. In conclusion, everything in a compatibility study is important.

Objective: To retrospectively evaluate intravenous antifungal medications in paediatric patients in a public hospital for children.Method: Data relevant to the antifungal prescription were collected for all the patients <18 years of age who had been prescribed IV antifungal therapy. All paediatric patients prescribed intravenous antifungal treatment for one year (July 2006 to 30th June 2007) at PMH were evaluated retrospectively. The data collected were evaluated against the Australian Therapeutic Guidelines: Antibiotic Version 13 and hospital in house guidelines for IV antifungal therapy from the microbiology department at the hospital.Results: There were 59 patients included in the study and the most frequently diagnosed disease was leukemia. Of the total 59 patients, liposomal amphotericin B (L-AmB) was prescribed for 47 patients, conventional amphotericin B (C-AmB) for four patients, caspofungin for two patients and voriconazole for one patient. Five patients received combination antifungals. The dose of C-AmB was 1 mg/kg/day. Voriconazole dose of 5 mg/kg/day was given for a period of four days for one patient. Nine patients included in this study were neonates and they were prescribed L-AmB, C-AmB and a combination of Voriconazole and L-AmB. 34 patients out of 47 were prescribed 3mg/kg/day of L-AmB and the highest L-AmB dose prescribed was 5 mg/kg/day and the lowest dose was 1 mg/kg/day. The median number of days for L-AmB treatment was found to be 11 days and the maximum was 51 days. Additionally 6% of patients who received L-AmB had oral fluconazole recommended r five days after cessation of L-AmB. It was found that 27% of patients had a low potassium level and a significantly higher proportion of patients had abnormal alanine aminotransferase and 11(18.6%) of the 59 patients had abnormal serum creatinine levels. It was found that the mean temperature decreased to 37.0°C from a 38.3°C from commencement to the cessation of the IV antifungal treatment. The long