ENTtoday
  • Home
  • COVID-19
  • Practice Focus
    • Allergy
    • Facial Plastic/Reconstructive
    • Head and Neck
    • Laryngology
    • Otology/Neurotology
    • Pediatric
    • Rhinology
    • Sleep Medicine
  • Departments
    • Issue Archive
    • TRIO Best Practices
      • Allergy
      • Facial Plastic/Reconstructive
      • Head and Neck
      • Laryngology
      • Otology/Neurotology
      • Pediatric
      • Rhinology
      • Sleep Medicine
    • Career Development
    • Case of the Month
    • Everyday Ethics
    • Health Policy
    • Legal Matters
    • Letter From the Editor
    • Medical Education
    • Online Exclusives
    • Practice Management
    • Resident Focus
    • Rx: Wellness
    • Special Reports
    • Tech Talk
    • Viewpoint
    • What’s Your O.R. Playlist?
  • Literature Reviews
    • Allergy
    • Facial Plastic/Reconstructive
    • Head and Neck
    • Laryngology
    • Otology/Neurotology
    • Pediatric
    • Rhinology
    • Sleep Medicine
  • Events
    • Featured Events
    • TRIO Meetings
  • Contact Us
    • About Us
    • Editorial Board
    • Triological Society
    • Advertising Staff
    • Subscribe
  • Advertise
    • Place an Ad
    • Classifieds
    • Rate Card
  • Search

Drug Shortages in Otolaryngology

by Mary Beth Nierengarten • September 30, 2015

  • Tweet
  • Email
Print-Friendly Version

“This impacts physicians’ practice overflow, but more notably it affects their patients who now have anxiety knowing that they’re not going to get their doctor’s first choice of drug for them,” he said. Overall, these shortages impact the quality and safety of patient care.

You Might Also Like

  • National Drug Shortage Hits ENT Surgeries: Succinylcholine, propofol and tetracaine in limited supply
  • Rising Drug Costs Create Concern About Drug Diversions
  • Drug Selection Influences Drug-Induced Sleep Endoscopy Findings
  • When It Comes to Drug Development, What Do Our Dollars Buy?
Explore This Issue
October 2015

As one solution for this problem, the FDA currently requires that pharmaceutical manufacturers inform them about when production interruptions or changes could lead to a reduced supply of drugs or when a single-source drug is discontinued, said Dr. Denneny (see “FDA App for Identifying Drug Shortages,” below).

He emphasized that the manufacturer still decides whether a change is significant enough to require FDA notification or not, however. “The FDA cannot require a company to make a drug, make more of a drug, or change a drug’s distribution, so more advanced warning and better strategies to communicate about potential shortages would be beneficial in terms of preparation,” he said.

Anand K. Devaiah, MD, associate professor in the department of otolaryngology-head and neck surgery at Boston University School of Medicine and chair of the AAO-HNS Medical Devices and Drugs Committee, also emphasized the importance of having a system in place to alert doctors when critical shortage levels of a drug are nearing. He warned, however, about not cutting corners on safety. “We should not circumvent the protections for manufacturing and compounding,” he said, noting the hard lessons that have been learned when this occurs. “Any solutions need to include appropriate safety precautions, whether we are in a state of shortage or not.”

He said working with the FDA can be helpful in creating solutions to the underlying problems that lead to drug shortages.

Dr. Denneny pointed out a couple of FDA practices currently used as short-term solutions. One is their ability to give support to manufacturing when the shortage is due to a production issue. Another may be to import needed drugs from abroad; however, the FDA allows this only in rare cases, due to the variation in safety standards and protections among different countries.

As for dealing with a drug shortage in the short term, physicians usually end up looking for an alternative, said Dr. Denneny. “If there isn’t an available or appropriate alternative, they may end up not treating the presented condition,” he said.


Mary Beth Nierengarten is a freelance medical writer based in Minnesota.

FDA App for Identifying Drug Shortages

In March 2015, the FDA launched a mobile device app to facilitate access to information on current drug shortages, as well as resolved shortages and discontinued drugs. The app, Drug Shortages, allowes users to look for the status of a particular drug by inputting its generic or brand name, or by its therapeutic category. The app also provides an easy way to report a suspected shortage to the FDA.

Pages: 1 2 3 4 | Single Page

Filed Under: Departments, Special Reports Tagged With: drugs, shortageIssue: October 2015

You Might Also Like:

  • National Drug Shortage Hits ENT Surgeries: Succinylcholine, propofol and tetracaine in limited supply
  • Rising Drug Costs Create Concern About Drug Diversions
  • Drug Selection Influences Drug-Induced Sleep Endoscopy Findings
  • When It Comes to Drug Development, What Do Our Dollars Buy?

The Triological SocietyENTtoday is a publication of The Triological Society.

The Laryngoscope
Ensure you have all the latest research at your fingertips; Subscribe to The Laryngoscope today!

Laryngoscope Investigative Otolaryngology
Open access journal in otolaryngology – head and neck surgery is currently accepting submissions.

Classifieds

View the classified ads »

TRIO Best Practices

View the TRIO Best Practices »

Top Articles for Residents

  • Do Training Programs Give Otolaryngology Residents the Necessary Tools to Do Productive Research?
  • Why More MDs, Medical Residents Are Choosing to Pursue Additional Academic Degrees
  • What Physicians Need to Know about Investing Before Hiring a Financial Advisor
  • Tips to Help You Regain Your Sense of Self
  • Should USMLE Step 1 Change from Numeric Score to Pass/Fail?
  • Popular this Week
  • Most Popular
  • Most Recent
    • The Dramatic Rise in Tongue Tie and Lip Tie Treatment
    • Vertigo in the Elderly: What Does It Mean?
    • Experts Delve into Treatment Options for Laryngopharyngeal Reflux
    • Some Laryngopharyngeal Reflux Resists PPI Treatment
    • Weaning Patients Off of PPIs
    • New Developments in the Management of Eustachian Tube Dysfunction
    • Vertigo in the Elderly: What Does It Mean?
    • Some Laryngopharyngeal Reflux Resists PPI Treatment
    • Eustachian Tuboplasty: A Potential New Option for Chronic Tube Dysfunction and Patulous Disease
    • The Dramatic Rise in Tongue Tie and Lip Tie Treatment
    • Podcasts Becoming More Popular Method of Education for Otolaryngologists
    • How to Embrace Optimism in the Midst of the COVID-19 Pandemic
    • Tips on How to Approach Conversations with Patients about the COVID-19 Vaccine
    • Steps You Should Take to Protect Your Voice and Hearing During Telemedicine Sessions
    • Routine Postoperative Adjunct Treatments Unnecessary for Idiopathic Cerebrospinal Fluid Leaks

Polls

Have you spoken with your patients about receiving the COVID-19 vaccine?

View Results

Loading ... Loading ...
  • Polls Archive
  • Home
  • Contact Us
  • Advertise
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Use

Visit: The Triological Society • The Laryngoscope • Laryngoscope Investigative Otolaryngology

Wiley
© 2021 The Triological Society. All Rights Reserved.
ISSN 1559-4939

loading Cancel
Post was not sent - check your email addresses!
Email check failed, please try again
Sorry, your blog cannot share posts by email.
This site uses cookies: Find out more.