A study assessing the knowledge, attitude, and practice of drug repurposing among doctors in India

Abstract

Abstract: BACKGROUND: Drug repurposing, also known as the drug repositioning approach, involves the exploration of existing drugs, originally developed for one medical condition, for their potential efficacy in treating entirely different diseases. This abstract presents the findings of a knowledge, attitude, and practice study that delves into the understanding and perceptions of doctors, regarding the potential of drug repurposing. AIMS AND OBJECTIVES: The study’s objective was to evaluate knowledge, attitudes, and practices about the drug repurposing and off-label use of drugs, among doctors in India. MATERIALS AND METHODS: It was an observational, cross-sectional, questionnaire-based study conducted among doctors in India. The structured self-administered Google Forms based survey was distributed to the participants and their replies were gathered. There are 18 questions on the survey about knowledge, attitudes, and drug repurposing practices. RESULTS: A total of 250 doctors and postgraduate residents were issued the questionnaire and 196 of them responded – a response rate of 78.4%. Only 39.2% of participants got >70% marks in knowledge-related questions. The majority of participants (82.2%) considered that drug repurposing is beneficial for health care and using off-label drugs. Seventy-one percentage of participants ethically support drug repurposing. About 79.7% think that lack of information and safety issues are the main barriers to accepting drug repurposing. CONCLUSION: Drug repurposing leverages existing medication knowledge and data to speed up drug development, providing new treatments for various conditions. Our study reveals a physician’s knowledge gap on drug repurposing and off-label drug use, highlighting the need for pharmaceutical industry conferences and seminars to educate doctors.