BACKGROUND AND AIMS Methadone is a well-known drug for the treatment of heroinopathy but its role as an analgesic is often forgotten, especially in primary and non-specialist medicine settings. In this article we want to describe its characteristics in this application not only for the cessation of painkillers but above all for the management of neuropathic pain and hyperalgesia induced by opioid therapy in the long term. METHODS AND RESULTS We conducted searches in PUBMED and MEDLINE for clinical trials and reviews done on the efficacy and safety of methadone used for analgesia in chronic pain and in the disassuefation from painkillers abuse. Clinical trials and the works found have overall shown that this drug has positive effects on the control of pain especially neuropathic and mixed and on some associated aspects such as the quality of life. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS Methadone remains a mysterious but at the same time fascinating drug, both for the aura of mystery around its name, frowned upon by both patients and prescribers, but at the same time unparalleled in terms of efficacy for analgesia in cancer pain and not, especially in patients who have lost sensitivity to other opioids even more potent than methadone such as fentanyl. In other words, the efficacy in the cessation of abusers of painkillers both for recreational purposes and secondary to background pain now no longer controlled makes this drug unique as a maintenance therapy.

INTRODUCTION. Many crimes, especially of a sexual nature, are committed using sedative substances to reduce the victim's state of consciousness and reactivity and are defined as "drugs facilitated crimes". Among these, benzodiazepines (BDZ) and some new designer derivatives are widely used especially in liquid formulations added to other drinks. The purpose of this article is to analyze the chemical, toxicological and analytical characteristics starting from the alteration data and through in-depth analysis on dedicated databases. MATERIALS AND METHODS. We conducted searches in PUBMED, PUBCHEM, CHEMID PLUS and GOOGLE SCHOLAR for papers and documents done on qualitative characteristics of the BDZ most commonly used as facilitating crimes. We have selected research articles and reviews from 2012 to 2022, with the primary endpoint relative to the typology of BDZ found in the samples examined in the various studies. We also researched their chemical and toxicological characteristics on the PUBCHEM and CHEMID PLUS international databases. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS. Benzodiazepines (BDZs) are among the most commonly used sedatives for illicit purposes, including their use to facilitate sexual crimes or robbery, alone or in co-administration with other substances, especially alcohol. In recent years there have been recorded cases of both classic BDZ intoxication, marketed as medicinal specialties, but also of new designer BDZs such as cinazepam, flualprazolam or phenazepam, less easily detectable in first-level toxicological tests and often much more potent than other more commonly used compounds. The analytical techniques in use, especially the first-level assays used in triages, can sometimes fail to cross-react and make these molecules invisible which, even in the most sophisticated confirmation tests such as techniques combined with mass spectrometry, do not always make these new psychoactive substances detectable.

Introduction: Anthracyclines are among the most powerful antineoplastic drugs ever developed and, even today, they are widely used according to various association schemes in the onco-hematological field. However, cardiotoxicity remains one of the most feared and characteristic side effects, both short and long term, often causing the premature interruption of therapy or irreversible effects after their suspension. In this article, we want to explain the underlying biological mechanisms, the clinical presentation characteristics and the possible strategies to prevent it. Materials and Methods: A computerized research was carried out for the articles to be inserted through use of international databases PUBMED, RESEARCHGATE and GOOGLE SCHOLAR, by typing in keywords such as “anthracyclines cardiotoxicity” and “cardioprotection strategies for anthracycline toxicity” and related articles. Discussion and Conclusions: The toxicity of these drugs on the heart represents the limiting factor both for their indications and for the success of the therapy, sometimes being the cause of premature interruption or impossibility of use in some patients. It depends especially on the cumulative dose used in the single patient and on the pre- existing risk conditions for the development of these ADRs, both in the short and long term. However, there are strategies that can avoid or reduce the damage, both related to the formulation of the compounds and to the co- administration of other drugs.

Introduction: Therapeutic errors are among the main causes of drug-related problems, in terms of enhanced toxicological or reduced therapeutic effect, and concern all stages of the drug chain, from manufacturing to prescription, dispensing and administration. Everyone, pharmacists and doctors in all settings, should be aware of how to prevent and manage them and which drugs are at greatest risk. In this article we will focus on LASA (look alike/sound alike), on FAR (high-risk drugs) and on the guidelines especially for prevention. Methods: The article is a minireview that was written by research in paper and online on PubMed and Embase. We performed a search of any publications available in these databases between the years 1990 and 2022, using the key words: therapeutic errors, misuse / diversion of drugs, drug poisoning. After a review of the titles and abstracts, the articles chosen were considered relevant in providing evidence of the problem. We also added personal knowledge about the topic of the article and used some paper documents. Discussion and Conclusions: Most of the errors in therapy occur during administration, due to errors in doses, posology or interactions or incorrect manipulations of pharmaceutical forms, and in dispensing, due to incorrect interpretation of the prescription or confusion on the packaging in the case of LASAs. Pharmacists and doctors but also patients themselves should pay attention to the time of prescription and doctors to the drug history not only for interactions but also to avoid making mistakes in patients who take drugs with names or packages similar to the one described above. Moreover, attention must be paid in writing the prescription, in dosage, and pharmaceutical forms. Particular attention should be paid to handling by children and to avoiding any misuse of the medicines themselves.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS Methadone is a well-known drug for the treatment of heroinopathy but its role as an analgesic is often forgotten, especially in primary and non-specialist medicine settings. In this article we want to describe its characteristics in this application not only for the cessation of painkillers but above all for the management of neuropathic pain and hyperalgesia induced by opioid therapy in the long term. METHODS The article was written by referring both to the technical data sheets of the drug and by associating research in paper and online books on databases such as Scopus, PubMed, Cochrane Library and Embase. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS Methadone remains a mysterious but at the same time fascinating drug, both for the aura of mystery around its name, frowned upon by both patients and prescribers, but at the same time unparalleled in terms of efficacy for analgesia in cancer pain and not, especially in patients who have lost sensitivity to other opioids even more potent than methadone such as fentanyl. In other words, the efficacy in the cessation of abusers of painkillers both for recreational purposes and secondary to background pain now no longer controlled makes this drug unique as a maintenance therapy.