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Analgesic-Related Medication Errors Reported to US Poison Control Centers.
Madhulika Eluri1,2, Henry A Spiller3,4, Marcel J Casavant1,3,4
1Center for Injury Research and Policy at Nationwide Children's Hospital, Columbus, Ohio.
Pain Medicine (Malden, Mass.)
|November 30, 2017
Summary
Analgesic medication errors are frequent, with a notable increase from 2000-2009. While most errors had minor outcomes, some led to severe consequences, highlighting the need for targeted prevention strategies.
Area of Science:
- Pharmacovigilance
- Public Health
- Medication Safety
Background:
- Medication errors involving analgesics represent a significant public health concern.
- Understanding trends and characteristics of these errors is crucial for developing effective safety interventions.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the characteristics and temporal trends of medication errors related to analgesic use.
- To analyze the types of analgesics involved, patient demographics, and outcomes of these errors.
Main Methods:
- A retrospective analysis of analgesic-related medication errors reported to the National Poison Data System (NPDS) from 2000 to 2012.
- Data included error types, analgesic categories, patient age, management, and outcomes.
Main Results:
- Over 533,000 analgesic medication errors were reported between 2000-2012, with an 82.6% increase from 2000-2009.
- Acetaminophen and NSAIDs were the most common analgesics involved; children under five were most affected.
- Most errors were managed on-site, but 1.5% resulted in serious outcomes, including 145 deaths.
Conclusions:
- Analgesic medication errors are common and can lead to severe adverse events.
- Initiatives reducing acetaminophen errors in children, combining policy and collaboration, warrant further study and replication.
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