Drug utilization study in ophthalmology outpatient department at a tertiary care teaching hospital

Abstract

Background: Drug utilization studies are one of the key tools to provide basis for making evidence-based health-care decisions. Ophthalmology is the field in which there have been many drug developments in recent years. There are different classes of drug products available for the treatment of ophthalmic diseases. Given the scenario, such assessment in the form of drug utilization study supports to upgrade the quality of prescription. Nevertheless, such studies are less frequently done in Gujarat and hence this study was undertaken. Aim and Objective: This study aims to study drug utilization trends and patterns of prescription and in the ophthalmology outpatient department at a tertiary care teaching hospital in Ahmedabad. Materials and Methods: It was a cross-sectional, observational study conducted over the duration of 2 months, collecting in total 203 prescriptions, in the ophthalmology department of a tertiary care teaching hospital, Ahmedabad. Relevant information about the prescriptions were recorded and analyzed using the WHO prescribing indicators and additional indices. Results: Prescription scrutiny of 203 patients revealed that number of drugs per prescription was 2.61. Among the prescribed drugs, the most commonly prescribed were ocular lubricants (28.11%) followed by antimicrobials (15.84%) and anti-histamines (15.28%). Conspicuously, the most common prescribed dosage form were eye drops (68.3%), followed by tablets (26.79%), ointments (4.33%), and capsules (0.56%). Fluoroquinolones were the most commonly prescribed antimicrobials (74.4%) followed by aminoglycosides (13.6%) and cephalosporins (8.8%). Conclusion: We concluded that ocular lubricants, antibiotics, and anti-histamines topped the prescribing pattern in this study with restrain on multidrug use.