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Updated: May 25, 2026

Drug Repurposing Hypothesis Generation Using the "RE:fine Drugs" System
Published on: December 11, 2016
Evaluation of Drug Utilization Patterns during Initial Treatment in the Emergency Room: A Retroprospective
Chakrapani Cheekavolu1, Rama Mohan Pathapati, Kudagi Babasaheb Laxmansingh
1Department of Pharmacology, Narayana Medical College Hospital, Chinthareddypalem, Andhra Pradesh, Nellore 524002, India.
Abstract:
Background. We assessed the prescribing trends, average number of drugs per prescription, and cost per prescription during the initial contact of the patient with the physician in emergency room. Methods. This retro-prospective study was conducted over a period of six months. Medical records of two hundred patients were reviewed for prescribing patterns. Results. 52 different types of drugs (996 drugs) were prescribed in total 200 prescriptions during the mean time spent in emergency room of 2.8 ± 1.4 hours. The average number of drugs per prescription was 4.2 ± 1.2. 95% of drugs were prescribed by trade name. Average drugs cost per prescription was 784 ± 134 rupees (17USD). Conclusion. Polypharmacy remains the main form of irrational prescribing. Prescribing patterns of drugs were knowledge based rather than WHO criteria for rational use of drugs.
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Pharmacovigilance
This process, termed pharmacovigilance, aims to detect, evaluate, and minimize harmful effects related to medication use. The data collection for pharmacovigilance depends on spontaneous reporting systems, where healthcare professionals or patients voluntarily report suspected ADRs.
In some cases, there...