Tag Archives: USP

How Contaminated Cosmetics Are No Superficial Problem

collection of different cosmetics

Throughout human history, we have maintained a conflicted relationship with our bodies. We don’t just mean the struggle to lose a pound or two, or the issues some of us face with physical dysfunction. It goes so much further than that, as news headlines frequently remind us. But there’s a way in which our bodily [Read More…]

Can a Microneedle Patch Delivering Nanoparticles of Drugs Revolutionize Body Sculpting?

Chubby woman hand holding her own belly fat at outdoor under the sunlight.

Given the number of food-related articles we’ve published in recent months, you may be forgiven for thinking we are somewhat obsessed. While researching topics like activated charcoal in ice cream to wine-infused coffee beans to last month’s unveiling of the all-new ruby chocolate, we at Berkshire have enjoyed feasting our eyes on some exciting new [Read More…]

Should Cellphones Be Allowed In A Cleanroom?

businesswoman texting while driving

Anyone who’s ever driven a car has been there. It’s a common enough scenario: you’re sitting in traffic on the freeway during the morning commute, the sun’s climbing slowly into the sky, its pale light casting a wan glow over the road ahead. Pausing to sip the coffee you grabbed at the drive-thru, you notice [Read More…]

Compounding Pharmacies: Exploring the Insanitary/Unsanitary Conundrum

Black mold

Introduction When it comes to pharmaceutical products, medications, or nutritional supplements, as members of the contamination control industry – and as consumers – we like to believe that they are health-promoting, safe, and pure. From a professional standpoint, we understand the critical importance of preparing, packaging, and storing materials and compounds that will be absorbed [Read More…]

There’s Clean…and then there’s ‘Cleanroom Clean.’

Sterile SatPax

When it comes to cleanroom and controlled-environment news, the stories we read in the press can often be dramatic. Last week, we reviewed a dire situation with ebola where sub-standard gowns, gloves, and glove liners were jeopardizing the lives of medical personnel by allowing bodily fluids to permeate through to the wearer’s skin in a [Read More…]

When Standard Operating Procedures Aren’t Enough

Standard Operating Procedures

Although the FDA sometimes has a reputation as a stickler, it’s clear that the Food and Drug Administration often demonstrates a lot of patience, too—except when a company refuses to update their operating procedures to make required fixes to bring their standard operating procedures. Listen: we get it. No one likes to hear phrases like [Read More…]

Contamination Control News: Compounding the Problem

Question of the Week: When does owning not one but two slick websites make up for the absence of ethics in aseptic processing? Answer: When it comes to a compounding pharmacy – never! Yet Professional Arts Pharmacy, a compounding pharmacy based in Baltimore, MD, seems to think that it does. With a confidence-inspiring main website [Read More…]

Contamination Control News: When Honey is Not So Sweet.

Compounding Pharmacies

In Lithuanian, the noun ‘Medaus’ translates as ‘honey,’ at once a description of nature’s superlative food and a term that’s come to describe something of excellent quality. ‘That’s one honey of a car!’ we might exclaim in admiration of our neighbor’s Jaguar, for example. But excellence is not what immediately springs to mind when reviewing [Read More…]

New Rules for Compounding Pharmacies in 2016

USP 797 Sampling Swabs

After a string on contamination issues in compounding pharmacies, the FDA has expanded some of it’s definitions and adopted some changes that seek to improve patient outcomes. One of the biggest changes in 2016 has been adopting a new broader definition of compounding which before was defined by Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act which [Read More…]

The Truth About “LINT-FREE” Wipes

Lint Free Wipes

“Lint Free Wipes” is a term that evolved with the semiconductor industry since it’s infancy and is a descriptive way of saying the application requires a low-linting solution. A search on the internet returns a plethora of web related searches for Lint Free Wipes. The only problem is that there is technically not such thing [Read More…]