[Drug policy in Slovakia and its reflection in prescriptions. 2. Prescriptions of individually prepared drugs based on the medical specialty].

The paper aims to analyze the frequency of medical prescriptions for the group of extemporaneously prepared drugs in relation to the specialization of physicians. The evaluation is based on the database of prescriptions dispensed by four pharmacies within 14.5 months in the years 1999-2000. The total number of prescriptions was 133,857, out of which 5615 (4.2%) were extemporaneous preparations. The share of specialists in the prescription of extemporaneous drugs was 7%, that of general practitioners, 1.4%. Out of the specialists, the largest share in the prescription of extemporaneously prepared drugs belonged to dermatologists, otorhinolaryngologists, and pediatricians. The economic aspect of prescription of the group of extemporaneous drugs was also evaluated. The average value of a medical prescription for an extemporaneously prepared drug was 68.40 SK, which represents 17.8% of the average value of a medical prescription for a mass-produced drug.