ADVERSE DRUG REACTIONS TO ANTIBIOTICS OBSERVED IN TWO PULMONOLOGY DIVISIONS OF CATANZARO, ITALY: A SIX-YEAR RETROSPECTIVE STUDY
Section snippets
INTRODUCTION
Pharmacovigilance or post-marketing surveillance aims to identify and quantify the risks associated with the use of drugs [1], thus contributing to better understand the most important characteristics of adverse drug reactions (ADRs) and the pathogenic mechanisms involved. Indeed, ADRs represent a common clinical problem and can be responsible for an increased number and/or duration of hospitalisations [2], [3]. An ADR is associated with a significantly prolonged length of stay, increased
METHODS
This study was carried out in two pulmonology divisions of Catanzaro, Italy, located at “Mater Domini” University Hospital and “Pugliese-Ciaccio” Hospital, respectively. We retrospectively analysed the medical records referring to patients who were hospitalised between 1 January 1995 and 31 December 2000. The clinical records of patients receiving antibiotics were reviewed and the following data were obtained: sex and age of the patient, previous history of drug allergy and therapy duration,
RESULTS
During the study period, 4612 clinical records and 18 464 prescriptions were analysed. According to the definition of ADRs and Kramer’s causality algorithm, we reported that within 205 suspects of ADRs (1.11% of total prescriptions), 92 were induced by antibiotics (44.9%). Patients with ADRs induced by antibiotics and by other drugs, did not show any significant difference in the sex ratio (man 53.2% and woman 46.8%; man 56.2% and woman 43.8%, respectively).
The percentage of patients with a
DISCUSSION
An ADR is any response that is unintended and undesired, and that occurs at commonly used doses. The reaction may be idiosyncratic or pharmacologically predictable. Cumulative side effects of medications taken concurrently increase the risk of adverse reactions.
Antibiotics are the most widely used drugs in hospitalised patients. Due to limitations of spontaneous reporting, pharmaco-epidemiological studies may be the only source of information about the benefit–risk profile of medications
References (30)
- et al.
Adverse drug reaction monitoring: doing it the French way
Lancet
(1985) - et al.
Adverse drug reactions in children reported by means of the yellow card in Spain
J. Clin. Epidemiol.
(2000) - et al.
Frequency, severity and risk factors for adverse drug reactions in adult out-patients: a prospective study
J. Chronic. Dis.
(1986) - et al.
Pharmacodynamic basis for altered drug action in the elderly
Clin. Geriatr. Med.
(1988) - et al.
The incidence of antimicrobial allergies in hospitalised patients: implications regarding prescribing patterns and emerging bacterial resistance
Arch. Intern. Med.
(2000) - et al.
Analysis of the direct cost of adverse drug reactions in hospitalised patients
Eur. J. Clin. Pharmacol.
(2001) - et al.
Adverse drug events in hospitalised patients. Excess length of stay, extra costs, and attributable mortality
JAMA
(1977) - et al.
Understanding and preventing adverse drug reaction
AACN Clin. Issues
(1998) - et al.
Drug allergy assessment at an university hospital and clinic
Am. J. Health Syst. Pharm.
(1996) Spontaneous reporting of adverse drug reactions: I. The data
Br. J. Clin. Pharmacol.
(1988)
Postmarketing surveillance and adverse drug reactions
JAMA
Adverse drug reactions to antibiotics and major antibiotic drug interactions
Gen. Physiol. Biophys.
An algorithm for the operational assessment of adverse drug reactions. I. Background, description, and instructions for use
JAMA
Toward the operational identification of adverse drug reactions
Clin. Pharmacol. Ther.
Drug-induced illness as a cause for admission to a community hospital
J. Am. Geriatr. Soc.
Cited by (43)
Psoriasiform eruption secondary to metformin: A rare situation to be known
2016, Medecine des Maladies MetaboliquesLack of efficacy during the switch from brand to generic allopurinol
2013, Journal of Forensic and Legal MedicineCitation Excerpt :Moreover, other authors documented significant differences in peak concentrations between these formulations.3,4 Since the number of spontaneous reporting of adverse drug reactions (ADRs) is usually underestimated,5 we documented the development of side effects in well treated patients,6–17 therefore it is possible that differences in active substances as well as in bioequivalence can induce the development of side effects or the lack of therapeutic effects. In the USA, the orange book publishes the list of drugs approved by FDA with therapeutic equivalence evaluations (defined as AA or AB).
Oxygen–Ozone Therapy in Cervicobrachial Pain: A Real-Life Experience
2023, Journal of Clinical MedicineA REVIEW ON DRUG ADDICTION AND HABITUATION AND TREATMENT FOR DRUG ADDICTON
2023, International Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences and ResearchIs there a Link between Non Melanoma Skin Cancer and Hydrochlorothiazide?
2022, Current Drug Safety