Jean Gray

Depression of theophylline elimination by erythromycin

The elimination of a single oral dose of theophylline was studied in 12 healthy subjects before and after 250 mg erythromycin every 8 hr for 10 days. Serum theophylline levels were measured by high‐pressure liquid chromatography. Mean theophylline elimination half‐life rose from 4.79 ± 0.43 hr before to 7.53 ± 0.71 hr after erythromycin. Theophylline clearance decreased from a mean of 91.6 ± 27.0 to 54.8 ± 10.0 ml/kg/hr after erythromycin and the mean apparent volumes of distribution were much the same before and after the antibiotic. The excretion of theophylline and its metabolites was studied in the urine of three of the subjects. In each case the amount of 3‐methyixanthine and 1,3‐dimethyluric acid decreased after antibiotic. Adjustments of the theophylline dosage may be necessary for patients who take theophylline and erythromycin concurrently to minimize the risk of theophylline toxicity.

Why Can't a Woman Be More Like a Man?

Clinical pharmacology is finally crossing the last frontier—the recognition that men and women are different, not just in outward appearance, but also in the way in which they handle drugs. As outlined by Janice Schwartz 1 in this issue, sex differences in drug pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics are measurable and, in some instances, may even be significant. This is of particular importance in the elderly, a population frequently requiring multiple drugs and dealing with both the social and health aspects of aging.

CLINICAL PHARMACOLOGY EDUCATION IN PRIMARY CARE RESIDENCY PROGRAMS

Clinical Pharmacology & Therapeutics (1997) 62, 237–240; doi:

Achieving the World Health Organization's vision for clinical pharmacology

Clinical pharmacology is a medical specialty whose practitioners teach, undertake research, frame policy, give information and advice about the actions and proper uses of medicines in humans and implement that knowledge in clinical practice. It involves a combination of several activities: drug discovery and development, training safe prescribers, providing objective and evidence‐based therapeutic information to ethics, regulatory and pricing bodies, supporting patient care in an increasingly subspecialized arena where co‐morbidities, polypharmacy, altered pharmacokinetics and drug interactions are common and developing and contributing to medicines policies for Governments. Clinical pharmacologists must advocate drug quality and they must also advocate for sustainability of the Discipline. However for this they need appropriate clinical service and training support. This Commentary discusses strategies to ensure the Discipline is supported by teaching, training and policy organizations, to communicate the full benefits of clinical pharmacology services, put a monetary value on clinical pharmacology services and to grow the clinical pharmacology workforce to support a growing clinical, academic and regulatory need.

Looking at Research Through a Different Lens: The Canadian Institute of Gender and Health

In 2001, a national research institute devoted to the study of inter‐relationships among sex, gender, and health was created by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) as the first of its kind in the world. Established with a vision “to transform understanding of the impact of gender and sex on health across the lifespan and ensure its application in health research in Canada,” the Institute of Gender and Health (IGH) supports research to address how sex (biological factors) and gender (sociocultural experiences) interact with other factors that influence health to create conditions and problems that are unique, more prevalent, more serious, or different with respect to risk factors or effective interventions for women, men, girls, and boys.

Promoting gender equity through health research: impacts and insights from a Canadian initiative

The World Health Organization (WHO) recently identified major knowledge gaps regarding gender and sex as determinants of health. Canada recognized the importance of mobilizing research, and informing programs and policies focused on promoting the health of males and females across their lifespans by creating a national research institute that is focused on the study of gender, sex and health. No other country has created a national research institute dedicated to gender and health. Other countries may benefit from the strategies used by this Canadian research institute to create and sustain success, including: (i) mechanisms for defining national research priorities; (ii) tools to optimize research excellence; (iii) vehicles to build research capacity and develop a research community; (iv) processes to convert new knowledge into practice, programs and policies; (v) creation of partnerships at both the national and international levels and (vi) solutions to challenges and obstacles. The development of a vibrant research community and powerful national and international collaborations promotes gender and health equity.

The State of Clinical Pharmacology Today

It has been more than 40 years since a major position paper on clinical pharmacology was published by the World Health Organization (WHO). A recent publication, Clinical Pharmacology in Health Care, Teaching, and Research, provides a current vision of the discipline suitable for the twenty‐first century.

A message from the Education Committee Chairman

Clinical Pharmacology & Therapeutics (1996) 60, 236–236; doi:

A Problem-Based Approach to Teaching Clinical Pharmacology

Clinical Pharmacology & Therapeutics (1996) 59, 211–211; doi: 10.1038/sj.clpt.1996.344

1996 ASCPT workshop on clinical pharmacology in primary care residency education

Clinical Pharmacology & Therapeutics (1995) 58, 700–700; doi: