Objective: Over-the-counter (OTC) drugs play an important role in medical treatment.  Triage and counseling by pharmacists are important to ensure that self-medication with OTC drugs is effective.
Methods: We conducted a questionnaire survey to evaluate the education about OTC drugs offered by 79 Japanese pharmaceutical universities, from August to September 2009.  The questionnaire asked whether or not lectures and practical training concerning OTC drugs are given to students, and if so, the number of hours and the school year in which they are given.  Questions about future plans were also included.
Results: The response rate was 70 %.  Eighty percent of respondent universities gave lectures on OTC drugs, and 98 % expected to do so in the future.  Lectures on OTC drugs were most commonly given in the fourth year.  Fifty percent of universities offered practical training about OTC drugs, and 75 % expected to do so in the future.
Conclusion: Compared with our 2005 survey, the number of universities offering lectures had increased more than twofold.  Although education about OTC drugs in pharmaceutical universities has improved, it remains insufficient.

Objective: The placebo effect can enhance the response to treatment, even in the absence of pharmacological ingredients. One possible factor explaining the likelihood of the placebo effect in individuals is genetic polymorphisms in neurotransmitters. This study focused on gene polymorphisms in the catechol-O-methyltransferase (COMT) as an interindividual variable of the placebo effect.Design・Methods: All 120 participants were explained the effects of caffeine, including its ability to ameliorate drowsiness and increase concentration, and then given a placebo (lactose). The onset of the placebo effect was measured in terms of the degree of caffeine-reduced sleepiness using subjective indices of the Stanford Sleepiness Scale (SSS) and a feeling of drowsiness-Visual Analogue Scale (VAS). The mechanism of the placebo effect was objectively examined in terms of changes in cerebral blood flow in the prefrontal cortex of the brain. In addition, we investigated participants’ susceptibility to the placebo effect by examining genetic polymorphisms in COMT.Results: After taking the drug, sleepiness on the SSS and VAS was significantly improved (p＜0.001), although there was no change in prefrontal cortex activity. Among the 120 participants, 63 had a Val/Val-type polymorphism in COMT (52.5%), 45 had a Val/Met-type (37.5%), and 12 had a Met/Met-type (10.0%). There were no significant differences among COMT gene polymorphisms in the subjective measures of SSS and VAS. However, there was a tendency for the cerebral blood flow changes to be larger in the left hemisphere of the brain in individuals with the Met/Met type.Conclusion: There seems to be a relationship between prefrontal cortex activity and genetic polymorphisms. In particular, there may be a correlation between the expression of a placebo effect and COMT gene polymorphisms.