Background: Approximately 5-10% of the US population reports a Penicillin (PCN) allergy. Only 1 in 10 of these patients are found to have a positive reaction to PCN. This label comes at a grave cost, with higher incidences of multidrug-resistant nosocomial infections reported among these patients. With the lack of novel antibiotics and the alarming [...]

Background: The opioid epidemic continues to exert a significant impact on our health care system. Patients with intravenous drug use (IVDU) often develop life threating infections leading to prolonged hospitalizations with poor outcomes. Traditionally, the focus of treatment during these hospitalizations is on the infectious complications with very little emphasis on the underlying substance use [...]

Background: Approximately 5-10% of the US population reports a Penicillin (PCN) allergy. Only 1 in 10 of these patients are found to have a positive reaction to PCN. This label comes at a grave cost, with higher incidences of multidrug-resistant nosocomial infections reported among these patients. With the lack of novel antibiotics and the alarming [...]

Background: Penicillin discovered in 1928 by Sir Alexander Fleming, beginning of the antibiotic revolution. Penicillin as helped increase average life Span in USA from 47 years to 78.8 years. Beta lactam account to about 40% of total antibiotic use every year. 10% of patients in U.S. report penicillin allergy, but 9 out of 10 patients [...]

Background: One of the widely reported benefits of electronic health records (EHRs) is the ability to alert clinicians, especially regarding medication-related safety issues. However, soon after the installation of EHRs, the phenomenon of “alert fatigue” was realized. The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality has shown clinicians override the vast majority of computerized physician order [...]

Background: Deaths caused by drug overdose continue to be a public health crisis and contribute to overall mortality and the lowering of life expectancy in the United States. In 2021, the number of drug overdose deaths surged to nearly 107,000 nationally and more than 5,800 in New York State (NYS). Little is known about the [...]

Background: Systemic muscle relaxant prescriptions have risen in United States. Baclofen is a commonly prescribed muscle relaxant that is gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) agonist and renally cleared. We aimed to determine the risk of encephalopathy and mortality associated with baclofen compared to an alternate muscle relaxant cyclobenzaprine in a real-world setting. Methods: We conducted a retrospective [...]

Background: Intravenous low-molecular weight iron dextran is indicated for patients with iron deficiency who are unable to take oral iron or experience insufficient efficacy with oral replacement. Adverse effects have been reported, including anaphylaxis and death. The primary purpose of this study was to determine the proportion of patients experiencing adverse reactions in a wide [...]

Background: An average of 10% of patients in the U.S. report having a penicillin allergy yet the Centers for Disease Control estimates that less than 1% of the population are truly allergic. It is well described in adult literature that broad spectrum antibiotics are often used as penicillin alternatives and this may contribute to negative [...]

Background: Contemporary treatment for COVID-19 includes the use of SARS-2-CoV direct-acting antivirals (DAAs). An FDA assessment in the Medicare and Veterans Affairs population has suggested that individual agents in this class have significant differences in drug-drug interaction (DDI) potential based on their pharmacokinetic profiles; however, the clinical impact is not well established. We sought to [...]