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A statistical method is described for determining which recipient factors influence the efficacy of platelet transfusions in the treatment of thrombocytopenia caused by bone marrow depression. The method, known as interaction effects detection, is useful because it will relate a dependent variable 12‐hour posttransfusion in vivo platelet increment which is numerical to independent variables (recipient factors), which are not necessarily numerical or even rank ordered, in such a manner as to reveal the interactions among the independent variables. The results of the analysis suggest that seven of the 23 independent variables could be key ones in determining the efficacy of a transfusion, as measured by the dependent variable.

Controlled-release (CR) drug products dissolve more slowly than conventional-release products, reflecting their quality of sustaining a prolonged therapeutic effect. A frequent practice with scored tablets when only half the dosage is desired is to divide the tablet at the score mark and administer only half of the product. The dissolution characteristics of the divided tablets are unknown. It is only an assumption that the halved tablet behaves similarly to the whole tablet both in vitro and in vivo. A series of in vitro dissolution analyses was performed on whole and half CR theophylline tablets from different manufacturers. Statistical tests were carried out between the dissolution results of whole and those of halved tablets to determine whether the mean overall percentages dissolution (averaged over sampling times) were similar and whether the patterns of percentage dissolution over time were similar. The dissolution of halved tablets was slightly faster compared to that of intact (whole) tablets. However, these small differences were not large enough to cause concern or to require bioavailability studies.