Pharmacology 2014 to showcase latest research on NHS care

The British Pharmacological Society has announced that its annual meeting, Pharmacology 2014, will showcase the latest research on the NHS care received by children and the elderly in the UK. New findings in these 'Cinderella' areas (so-called because they are often neglected or over-looked) represent just a small sample of the cutting-edge research being presented next week.

Pharmacology 2014 will cover the latest news in drug discovery and development, and as well as clinical pharmacology - the only medical specialty focusing on the safe, effective and economic use of medicines. The meeting is set to attract 1,000 participants from the across the world when it opens in London for three days (16-18 December).

"On behalf of the British Pharmacological Society, I am proud to announce that we will be welcoming 1,000 scientists from 49 countries to London for Pharmacology 2014 .The meeting encourages the pharmacology community to come together for three days to celebrate its achievements and share the latest breakthroughs in our understanding of drugs and the way they work. I'm pleased to see that two particularly vulnerable groups of patients will benefit from the research that will be presented," comments Professor Humphrey Rang, the Society's President.

New antibiotic guidelines introduced in April 2014 already benefitting children:

On Wednesday 17 December, clinical pharmacologists will announce that more children have been receiving the minimum recommended dose of certain antibiotics, since the British National Formulary for Children introduced revised UK dosing guidelines. The new age-based guidelines affect children from 1 month to 18 years of age who are prescribed an antibiotic called amoxicillin, which is a type of penicillin commonly given for conditions such as ear infections.

The research presented at Pharmacology 2014 by a team from St George's University of London will show that:

• Before the new guidelines, children of average weights - from 1 to 15 years old - did not receive the minimum recommended daily dose of amoxicillin (per kilogram weight), potentially putting them at risk of inadequate treatment
• Under the new guidelines, two-thirds of children of average weight should now receive at least the minimum recommended amoxicillin dose

Dr Charlotte Barker, Clinical Research Fellow at St George's and one of the researchers, explains, "The revised age-based amoxicillin guidelines - when analysed with consideration of the average weights of children today - have clearly demonstrated their potential to improve the care of children with bacterial infections, since many age-groups now receive recommended doses. Our findings show that there is still room for improvement and increasing the use of weight-based prescribing in the UK could further benefit children's care."

Older patients have a higher rate of psychiatric hospital admission after overdose:

Also on Wednesday 17 December at Pharmacology 2014, clinical pharmacologists from the University of Edinburgh will call for improved psychiatric care for older patients, based on their new figures showing that:

• After overdosing, patients over 65 years old experienced longer stays in hospital (over 4 days on average) versus younger patients (less than 1 day)
• Older patients had a significantly greater need for transfer to psychiatric hospitals than their younger counterparts, with double the rate of transfers (23% versus 10%)

Dr Emma Morrison, from the University of Edinburgh and one of the study's authors, comments, "We found that patients over 65 years old who have intentionally overdosed are a particularly vulnerable group and that there is an urgent need for more targeted medical, psychological and social support. We welcome recent awareness campaigns designed to improve the wellbeing of older people and reduce loneliness, especially over the holiday period."

The study compiled detailed records of 381 patients over 65 years old presenting with self-poisoning for the first time at the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh over eleven years (2003-2013). These were compared to a similar group of patients under 45 years old who were admitted with self-poisoning on the same day.