| Title |
Off-label and unlicensed drug use in hospitalized newborns in a Saudi tertiary care hospital: a cohort study
|
|---|---|
| Published in |
International Journal of Clinical Pharmacy, May 2018
|
| DOI | 10.1007/s11096-018-0630-z |
| Pubmed ID | |
| Authors |
Faizan Mazhar, Shahzad Akram, Nafis Haider, Muhammad Abdul Hadi, Jabeen Sultana |
| Abstract |
Objective To determine the extent of off-label and unlicensed prescribing in hospitalized newborns and to identify patient-related risk factors associated with off-label prescribing. Methods A prospective cohort study was conducted between January and March 2016 at a neonatology department of a tertiary-care hospital in the Eastern province. All consecutive admissions to all neonatal care levels meeting the inclusion and exclusion criteria were eligible for enrollment. All prescriptions were classified as off-label or unlicensed according to drug product monograph. Clinical and prescription data were extracted using a pilot-tested structured data collection sheet. Results During the study period 583 prescriptions were made for 138 newborns, of which 29.7% (173/583) and 12.9% (75/583) were classified as off-label and unlicensed drugs respectively for use in neonates. Thirty-four percent (47/138) of patients received at least one off-label/unlicensed medicine. Mechanical ventilation, admission to the neonatal intensive care unit and length of hospital stay were identified as independent risk factors associated with prescribing of at least one off-label medication. Conclusion Use of off-label and unlicensed drugs in hospitalized newborns seems to be a common practice in this Saudi hospital. Future research should evaluate safety and efficacy of off-label and/or unlicensed use of drugs in neonates. |
X Demographics
The data shown below were collected from the profiles of 3 X users who shared this research output. Click here to find out more about how the information was compiled.
Geographical breakdown
| Country | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| United Kingdom | 1 | 33% |
| Qatar | 1 | 33% |
| Korea, Republic of | 1 | 33% |
Demographic breakdown
| Type | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Science communicators (journalists, bloggers, editors) | 1 | 33% |
| Scientists | 1 | 33% |
| Members of the public | 1 | 33% |
Mendeley readers
The data shown below were compiled from readership statistics for 38 Mendeley readers of this research output. Click here to see the associated Mendeley record.
Geographical breakdown
| Country | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Unknown | 38 | 100% |
Demographic breakdown
| Readers by professional status | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Student > Bachelor | 6 | 16% |
| Other | 4 | 11% |
| Student > Ph. D. Student | 4 | 11% |
| Researcher | 4 | 11% |
| Student > Master | 4 | 11% |
| Other | 3 | 8% |
| Unknown | 13 | 34% |
| Readers by discipline | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Pharmacology, Toxicology and Pharmaceutical Science | 11 | 29% |
| Medicine and Dentistry | 7 | 18% |
| Social Sciences | 3 | 8% |
| Immunology and Microbiology | 1 | 3% |
| Unknown | 16 | 42% |
Attention Score in Context
This research output has an Altmetric Attention Score of 2. This is our high-level measure of the quality and quantity of online attention that it has received. This Attention Score, as well as the ranking and number of research outputs shown below, was calculated when the research output was last mentioned on 07 May 2018.
All research outputs
#13,593,228
of 23,047,237 outputs
Outputs from International Journal of Clinical Pharmacy
#664
of 1,106 outputs
Outputs of similar age
#168,979
of 326,328 outputs
Outputs of similar age from International Journal of Clinical Pharmacy
#18
of 30 outputs
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