AHFS Drug Information 2022 – review
This edition of the book marks the 64th year of continuous publication of the title. It has its roots in the American Hospital Formulary Service (AHFS). It is the longest running official drug compendium published in the US by a scientific and professional society. It set out to provide an evidence-based foundation for safe and effective drug therapy. It is widely trusted for its established record in refuting unfounded efficacy claims, for its rigorous science-based editorial process and for its independence from the influence of the pharmaceutical industry. More than 500 professionals are involved in the review process and the information is derived from over 97,000 references. The American Society of Health-System Pharmacists (ASHP) has continued to build on this foundation with this edition offering essential evidence-based information that allows pharmacists, physicians, nurses and other healthcare providers to access, quickly and easily, the specific guidance needed to prescribe and monitor drug therapy safely and effectively.
AHFS Drug Information 2022 is available as a curated print edition. Some monographs have been omitted from this print edition due to space limitations. These are available on the ‘For Subscribers’ page of the AHFS DI website (www.ahfsdruginformation.com) in the ‘Electronic Only Monographs’ section.
The book comprises a collection of revised and expanded drug monographs, on single drug entities available in the USA. Drugs included in this edition are those that are frequently prescribed, those used as first-line therapy, or as the mainstay of important treatment regimens, those having a wider range of established indications, those with unique roles and those monographs which have been accessed frequently in the AFHS CDI data base. The monographs and references relate to current therapeutic guidelines including the latest information on Covid-19 vaccines and Covid-19 monoclonal antibodies, anticoagulant and neuromuscular blocking reversal strategies and expanded off-label uses, real world data and long-term clinical data. Fifty-one new molecular entities, approved since January 2021 are included.
Drug monographs are arranged by the AHFS Pharmacologic-Therapeutic Classification. Each monograph provides information that is critical at the point of care. It contains a concise overview of the drug’s uses (both labelled and off-label) and an easily navigated list of doses specific to each use, age group, route of administration and special population (e.g. patients with hepatic or renal impairment). Important cautionary information follows a structured outline with numerous subdivisions to help the reader in locating specific contraindications, warnings, sensitivity alerts, age and condition specific precautions, safety in pregnancy and in breast-feeding women, the most common and serious adverse effects and drug interactions. An overview of the drug’s pharmacological actions and effects, as well as key pharmacokinetic characteristics is also included.
Each monograph is organised so that the most clinically relevant and frequently sought information appears at the beginning.
AHFS Drug Information 2022 is soft backed with very flimsy pages. It is very easy to use and is an extremely valuable reference source.
The price includes access to the AHFS CDI app.
AHFS Drug Information 2022, Editor-in Chief Daniel J. Cobaugh.
Pp xxii + 3476. Price $440. American Society of Health-System Pharmacists (Maryland), 2022. ISBN 978-1-58528-684-3
