what makes a drug stable

[nenah]

4 all u chemists out there. one of a common interview question is what makes a drug stable?

n e answers? would it have to do with its chemical structure?

[Pharmanaut]

Originally Posted by nenah

4 all u chemists out there. one of a common interview question is what makes a drug stable?

n e answers? would it have to do with its chemical structure?

The chemical structure is the key

Its all a comprimise.
It needs to be chemically stable so that you can formulate it and for it to have a reasonable shelf life. You don't want it to be acid labile otherwise you have to buffer it or coat it that gastroresistant stuff. As well as that you don't want it to be digestable so that you have to stick to parenteral routes (injectable).

Metabolically, you don't want a lot of first pass metabolism, unless you have had to make a pro-drug. You don't really want a lot of liver metabolism because you get drug interactions. You want a half life so that dosing is once per day. You don't want it to be to lipophilic as it will accumulate.

However, if we suddenly found a cure for alzheimers or another debilitating condition that costs the NHS millions all the above would be of little concern as long as the stuff worked!

[Linnear]

Originally Posted by Pharmanaut

However, if we suddenly found a cure for alzheimers or another debilitating condition that costs the NHS millions all the above would be of little concern as long as the stuff worked!

All you have to do then is get NICE to OK it!

[Pharmanaut]

Originally Posted by Linnear

All you have to do then is get NICE to OK it!

If the drug was very effective but also cheap eg 10p per day how long would it take NICE to make a decision?

[Linnear]

The new ones never cost 10p though do they?


Saying that did you see this:

http://www.pharmj.com/Editorial/2006.../spectrum.html

Interesting reading and something I've always said.

Why should the NHS pay for Aspirin and Calpol. Blacklist the lot!

[Pharmanaut]

Originally Posted by Linnear

The new ones never cost 10p though do they?


Saying that did you see this:

http://www.pharmj.com/Editorial/2006.../spectrum.html

Interesting reading and something I've always said.

Why should the NHS pay for Aspirin and Calpol. Blacklist the lot!

Agreed, everybody knows that the NHS drugs budget is the way it is because the "greedy pharmacists are dispensing too many prescriptions". (A quote [perhaps misquoted] from a tabloid from a few years ago).

I think there's a mystique around stuff that is OTC. It is viewed a more powerful when the patient has it prescribed and does not know that it is OTC and also does not know that it is low cost.

The "Broad Spectrum" Article should be reprinted in the daily press.
However, I'm very jaded about what would happen as the NHS would have to get a management consultant or two in to investigate and set savings targets; and they would have to employ some managers with accompanying support staff to look make sure that the savings targets were met.

[johnep]

I have long experience of companies spending thousands to save pence.

MkKinsey were one of the companies offering to save a business money but their services were always very expensive.
johnep

[Linnear]

Originally Posted by Pharmanaut

The "Broad Spectrum" Article should be reprinted in the daily press.
However, I'm very jaded about what would happen as the NHS would have to get a management consultant or two in to investigate and set savings targets; and they would have to employ some managers with accompanying support staff to look make sure that the savings targets were met.

I wrote a bloody long letter to DoH pointing out wastages happening on a daily basis on FP10s. I got the stock reply of "It's up to Dr's to stop wastage and we have looked into altering exemptions but we believe yahda yahda yahda."

In other words, "If we make people pay for stuff we'll lose votes, regardless of whether the whole NHS goes tits up or not!"

Good here ain't it?