Residuos de medicamentos en Comodoro Rivadavia, Argentina

Se analizaron 37 farmacias y 11 dependencias municipales para evaluar la generación de residuos de medicamentos en instituciones locales. Los datos hallados fueron poco significativos al compararlos con los residuos biopatogénicos por volumen y peligrosidad. La generación domiciliaria de medicamentos caducos es mayor que la institucional. Se propone no incluir en la misma norma residuos biopatogénicos y medicamentos (por diferencias en el riesgo que involucran, recaudos de manejo y tratamientos requeridos), unificar nomenclatura en distintas jurisdicciones, devolver todos los medicamentos vencidos a los laboratorios de origen e implementar un sistema de recupero de medicamentos inutilizados en hogares para su disposición adecuada, bajo supervisión farmacéutica. Thirty-seven pharmacies and eleven community health centers were studied in order to evaluate the local pharmaceutical waste generation. The values obtained were of not much significance when their volume and riskness were compared with biopatogenic waste. Home generation of pharmaceutical waste was greater than institutional generation. It is proposed not to include biopatogenic and pharmaceutical waste in the same rule because of their differences in risk, management care and required treatments; to unify nomenclature in different jurisdictions; to return all expired pharmaceuticals to manufacturers, and to develop a recover system from homes to give the expired pharmaceuticals an appropriate management under a pharmacist responsibility. Colegio de Farmacéuticos de la Provincia de Buenos Aires