[Evaluation of drug consumption by hospitalized patients. Prospective survey]

Drug use was assessed in a prospective 6-month study carried out in the Department of General Medicine V and Rheumatology of the Nantes Regional Hospital Center. An attempt was made to evaluate consumption as realistically as possible, and a judgment was made based on the consensus of the medical team as to whether the prescription was justified or not. The mean number of drugs consumed by each patient was 2.8; 60% being prescribed for cardiovascular and neuropsychiatric purposes. As 33% of the prescriptions were considered unnecessary, it would appear that use was excessive in these hospitalized patients.