Parenteral anticoagulants use in general practice: a cross-sectional study in South Western France

Using parenteral anticoagulants in compliance with their summaries of product characteristics (SPCs) and consensus guidelines is associated with decreased rates of adverse drug reactions. The objectives were to assess compliance of parenteral anticoagulants use with SPCs and 4 consensus guidelines in outpatients of general practice. A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted among 112 teaching general practitioners' offices, from May to October 2011. Among the 332 adult outpatients consecutively included, 108 (32.5%) had a parenteral anticoagulant therapy complying with SPCs for both indication and regimen. The rate of compliance increased when considering consensus guidelines (159 patients, 47.9%). Rate of adverse events was 5.4%, including 0.6% of serious adverse events. This study showed that the use of parenteral anticoagulants complies with indications and regimens of SPCs in only 1 of the 3 outpatients. Further studies should be conducted in primary care to explore reasons for such low compliance rates.