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Potential drug-drug interactions in pediatric outpatient prescriptions for newborns and infants

Min-Li Yeh1, Ying-Jui Chang, Shu-Jen Yeh

  • 1Graduate Institute of Medical Sciences, College of Medicine, Taipei Medical University, Taipei, Taiwan; Department of Nursing, Oriental Institute of Technology, New Taipei, Taiwan.

Computer Methods and Programs in Biomedicine
|November 12, 2013
PubMed

Insights

This study analyzed potential drug-drug interactions (DDIs) in Taiwanese infants, finding that while overall rates are low, some interactions pose significant risks. Healthcare providers should remain vigilant when prescribing medications for this vulnerable population.

Area of Science:

  • Pediatric pharmacology
  • Drug safety research
  • Healthcare database analysis

Background:

  • Adverse drug reactions (ADR) contribute to significant morbidity and mortality.
  • Potential drug-drug interactions (DDIs) are known to increase the likelihood of ADR.
  • Limited data exists on ADR and DDI profiles in infants, highlighting an urgent research need.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To quantify and categorize potential drug-drug interactions (DDIs) in pediatric outpatient prescriptions.
  • To estimate the off-label drug use percentage in newborns and infants.
  • To analyze prescription data from Taiwan's National Health Insurance Research Database (NHIRD).

Main Methods:

  • Analysis of all physician prescriptions issued in the year 2000.
  • Identification of potential DDIs occurring on the same prescription sheet.
  • Utilizing data from the National Health Insurance Research Database (NHIRD) of Taiwan.

Main Results:

  • Over 6 million prescription sheets (3.99%) were for 2.1 million infants, with 19.4 million prescriptions (2.85%).
  • A total of 672,020 potential DDIs were identified, affecting approximately one in three patients.
  • Common interactions included aspirin with aluminum/magnesium hydroxide; significant interactions involved digoxin with furosemide, and cisapride with furosemide/erythromycin.

Conclusions:

  • Despite low overall prevalence, potentially life-threatening drug-drug interactions (DDIs) were identified in infants.
  • Physicians require ongoing reminders about potential DDIs when prescribing for newborns and infants.
  • The study underscores the importance of monitoring and managing DDIs in pediatric populations.
Abstract

Keywords:
Adverse drug reactionsDrug–drug interactionsInformation technologyNational Health InsurancePatient safety

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