Medications in the home are either placed atop the refrigerator, in a cabinet or dresser, in a book case, and in drawers. These are places where the medications can be seen easily at home and found when needed. The medications placed atop the refrigerator are Ibuprofen, Multivitamins + Iron, Ascorbic Acid, Mefenamic Acid, Loperamide, Ferrous Sulfate, and Aspirin. Medications found in the cabinet or dresser are Cotrimoxazole and Amoxicillin. Dexamethasone is found in the book case and Ofloxacine and Ambroxol are found in the drawer.
All of these medications are not yet expired. Even if the medications are sealed, environmental factors can still affect its stability and effectiveness. These environmental factors are temperature, humidity, and moisture. Temperature can affect the drug’s stability and effectiveness, especially if medications are not stored according to specifications. Sometimes medications are placed in very cold areas, such as the refrigerator. This would greatly affect the drug especially if it cannot tolerate freezing (Food and Drug Administration, 2001).
Moreover, the reaction rates of chemicals in drugs are highly dependent on the changes in temperature. Various drug testing on new drugs indicated that if there is a 10oC increase in temperature, there is a two to five times increase in decay (Washington State University, n. d. ). Humidity has an effect as well. In one study regarding the effects of humidity on the disintegrant property of a-Cellulose, it was found out that certain drugs such as paracetamol reacted to humidity. The study revealed that aspirin tablets were more likely to disintegrate under humidity because of its ability to intake moisture.
Furthermore, it was found out that tablet hardness decreases, while its disintegration increases when exposed to high humidity (Uhumwangho and Okor, 2005). Moisture is another factor affecting drug stability and effectiveness. In the same study regarding the effects of humidity on drugs, it was found out that moisture has an effect on the hardness and disintegration time of certain tablets. Paracetamol tablets became softer with time when exposed to humidity. In addition, aspirin could pick up moisture faster than paracetamol and chloroquine phosphate.
This means that there are drugs which absorb moisture and thus facilitate disintegration faster (Uhumwangho and Okor, 2005). The problem that exists regarding the environmental factors affecting the drug stability and effectiveness lies in the fact that there are some people who do not store their medications accordingly. There may be some people who disregard the importance of not keeping medications inside the refrigerator. Sometimes people are just too lazy to read the label for storage. As a result, these people might take medicines that are already expired or already disintegrating.
Knowing the effects that environment may have on drug therapy at home is one thing that could add to our knowledge of drug therapy. As patients believe that drug therapy at home would cause them to heal better, just the right “environment” would further add to the speed of restoration. Medications should not be just placed anywhere just because we can easily see them or we can remember the right time to take them. There should be a right place in the bedroom, or kitchen, or somewhere accessible to store medications, especially those that need special storage instructions.
These things are important to be imparted to patients who prefer to continue their drug therapy in their homes. It is important to make them understand that there are medications which deteriorate easily when not stored properly. This is especially an imperative for those whose medications are expensive and have high dosage. They will be spared from buying expensive drugs once the old ones disintegrated under poor storage. Knowing the effects that environment can have on the effectiveness and quality of medications can help patients to recover fully and save them money.
References
Food and Drug Administration. (2001). Guidance for industry Q1A stability testing of new drug substances and products. Retrieved February 19, 2009, from http://www. fda. gov/cder/guidance/4282fnl. htm Washington State University. (n. d. ). Stability: Drug degradation I. Retrieved February 19, 2009, from http://www. pharmacy. wsu. edu/courses/PharS531/Stability%20I. 2. htm Uhumwangho, M. U. and Okor, R. S. (2005). Effect of humidity on the disintegrant property of a-Cellulose, Part II: A technical note. AAPS PharmSciTech, 6(1). DOI: 10. 1208/pt060107