No abstract available.

No abstract available.

The third equation on page 44 should be corrected.

The equations on page 162 should be corrected.

In the published version of this article, the contents of Table 1 (‘Demographic characteristics of subjects’) are incorrect.

No abstract available.
Chromosome Aberrations*

More than 60 antiviral agents for various infectious diseases such as herpes, hepatitis, influenza, and AIDS are currently prescribed worldwide. Among the viral infections, hepatitis B and influenza are those frequently seen in primary care situations in Korea. This review discusses the anti-hepatitis B (HBV) drugs entecavir and adefovir, and the anti-influenza drugs oseltamivir and zanamivir. In addition, the pharmacology and therapeutic guidance suggested by the Korean Association for the Study of the Liver were reviewed for entecavir and adepovir, the most frequently prescribed anti-HBV drugs. For influenza, oseltamivir is commonly used despite debates on neuropsychiatric safety issues and zanamivir may be used when an inhalation form is necessary. Although currently used drugs show considerable clinical efficacy, efforts to optimize their use and further research to find new molecules that may overcome their limitations are necessary.
Adenine ; Antiviral Agents ; Communicable Diseases ; Guanine ; Hepatitis ; Hepatitis B ; Influenza, Human ; Inhalation ; Korea ; Liver ; Organophosphonates ; Oseltamivir ; Primary Health Care ; Zanamivir

To address the debate on the safety of generic substitution quantitatively, the author compared the change in AUC in virtual patients who were simulated for several different scenarios of generic substitution. In four scenarios of original (branded) to generic and generic to generic substitution, 5,000 virtual patients were simulated per scenario using the programming software R. The mean population AUC of generics ranged from 90-110% (scenarios A and B) and 80-123.5% (scenarios C and D) of the AUC of the original. Those patients who had an AUC change (ratio) as a result of drug substitution of less than 0.67 or greater than 1.5 were considered to be in potential danger due to the substitution. We found that less than 6% of patients fell outside of the cutoff range of 0.67-1.5 as a result of original to generic substitution. However, in the case of generic to generic substitution, the proportion was as high as 9-12%. This alerts us to the potential danger of generic substitution, especially for drugs with narrow therapeutic indices.
*Area Under Curve ; Attitude to Health ; Computer Simulation ; Drug Prescriptions ; Drugs, Generic/*pharmacokinetics/therapeutic use ; Humans ; Patients/psychology/statistics & numerical data ; Software ; Therapeutic Equivalency

This tutorial deals with basic concepts of clearance, the most important parameter in pharmacokinetics but often challenging for students in clinical pharmacology. Its relationships with dose, concentration and elimination rate are discussed using a physical model and examples of commonly used drugs, as well as its physiological aspects pertaining to the blood flow to differing organs. Finally, application of clearance to the calculation of maintenance dose rate and half-life is used to show how it is essential in pharmacotherapy and clinical pharmacology.
Drug Therapy ; Half-Life ; Humans ; Pharmacokinetics ; Pharmacology, Clinical

This tutorial deals with basic concepts of volume of distribution, the second most important parameter in pharmacokinetics but often challenging for students in clinical pharmacology. Its relationships with dose, concentration and amount in the body are discussed using a physical model and examples of commonly used drugs, as well as its physiological aspects pertaining to the physical volume of differing organs. Finally, application of volume of distribution to the calculation of loading dose and half-life is used to show how it is essential in pharmacotherapy and clinical pharmacology.
Drug Therapy ; Half-Life ; Humans ; Pharmacokinetics ; Pharmacology, Clinical