(080) Frequency of potential drug-drug interactions among patients with acute clinical conditions visiting ambulatory patient education center of a tertiary care hospital
Research Scholar JSS College of Pharmacy JSS College of Pharmacy, JSS Academy of Higher Education & Research, Mysuru Mysuru, India
Background: Polypharmacy is common in clinical practice, especially in chronic clinical conditions. There are certain acute clinical conditions that also require the use of multiple medications. Though polypharmacy is beneficial, it also carries the risk of drug-drug interactions and related adverse drug events. There are limited studies that evaluated the potential drug-drug interactions (pDDIs) in patients with acute clinical conditions.
Objectives: To assess the pDDIs among patients visiting the ambulatory patient education center of a tertiary care hospital.
Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted over a period of three months in an ambulatory patient education center of a tertiary care hospital. We reviewed all the medications prescribed to patients diagnosed with any acute clinical condition and visited the study site. Lexicomp® Drug Interactions database was used to check the pDDIs. The frequency of pDDI was calculated descriptively. The data relating to interacting drug pairs, such as clinical outcome, severity, and management of p-DDI were documented and suitable pharmacists’ interventions were made in an attempt to prevent the occurrence of actual drug-drug interactions.
Results: A total of 128 patients’ medications were reviewed, among which sixty pDDIs were identified in 39 patients. The frequency of pDDI was 30.4% (39/128). A majority (55%, 33/60) of the pDDIs were moderate, followed by minor (33.4%, 20/60) and major (11.6%, 7/60) in severity. Upon pharmacists’ intervention, a total of 38 pDDI drug pairs were changed by the prescribers, and the remaining (38/60) pDDIs were managed by advising dose-spacing to the patients.
Conclusions: Around one-third of the prescribed medications for acute clinical conditions carry the risk of pDDIs. A careful medication review by ambulatory care pharmacists can prevent pDDIs and related complications among patients with acute clinical conditions.
