No abstract

Background Our main objective was to assess the impact of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) on cancer services and cancer patients in terms of disease severity, morbidity and mortality. Secondary objectives were to characterize cancer type, affected age groups, gender, comorbidities, infectivity, and to identify cancer treatment delay and its complications after COVID-19 infection. Methods A retrospective analysis of electronic health records of polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-confirmed severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) infected cancer patients from April 2020 to March 2021 was done. The following parameters were investigated upon—new and follow-up cases during the pandemic and its preceding years (2018–2019, 2019–2020), age, sex, type of cancer, comorbidities, presentation, symptomatology and treatment for COVID-19, time to recovery, complications, delay in treatment and survival outcome. Statistical analysis using chi-square testing was done on the above variables. Results There was a 50.49% reduction in the number of new and follow-up cases as compared to that of the previous years. Seventy-four out of 310 (23.87%) COVID-19 positive cancer patients were aged in their sixth decade with the commonest type being hematological malignancies. A proportion of 84.8% (n=263) patients were asymptomatic. Univariate analysis was statistically significant for mortality with regard to age ≥60 years (P=0.034), type of malignancy (P=0.000178), hypertension (P=0.0028), symptomatology of COVID-19 infection (P=0.0016), site of treatment and oxygen/intervention (P<0.0001). There was an average delay in treatment time of 5 to 6 weeks. Multivariate analysis showed that gastrointestinal (GI) and hepato-pancreato-biliary (HPB) malignancies and oxygen requirement (>2 L/min) were responsible for the 20.65% mortality rate. Conclusions The pandemic significantly affected the care of cancer patients with decreased cases, late presentation, delayed treatment with potentially worse mortality outcome. Although they have decreased immunity, majority were asymptomatic. Most of the fatalities were in the GI and HPB malignancies.

No abstract

A transdermal patch is a medicated adhesive patch that is applied to the skin and used to deliver a particular amount of medication into the bloodstream through the skin. It aids in the recovery of an injured bodily part. The transdermal drug delivery system (TDDS) provides an alternative safe means of drug delivery to previous intrusive techniques. In the past, topically applied lotions and ointments were the most commonly utilised systems for dermatological issues. The fact that some of these formulations cause systemic side effects indicates that they are absorbed through the skin. All topically applied medication formulations intended to transport the active ingredient into the general circulation are included in the transdermal delivery system.To overcome the skin's formidable barrier to topical medication administration, several substances have been utilised. Because of their unique qualities, such as improved bioavailability, regulated pharmaceutical release, and improved patient compliance, TDDS have recently gained increased attention. The current review focuses on the various advancements in transdermal drug delivery, as well as the various available methods for preparing transdermal patches, characterization and assessment tools for transdermal patch preparation, patents, transdermal compound clinical trials, and drug approved and future applications of transdermal drug delivery systems. As a result, in recent years, the Transdermal Drug Delivery System has received a lot of attention.

No abstract