Psychotropic Drugs Used in Psychiatry Outpatient Department: A Cross-Sectional Drug Utilization Research

Abstract

Mental and behavioral disorders are common around the world. Pharmacotherapy, psychotherapy, and psychosocial rehabilitation are three treatment components for these disorders. Drug therapy is an essential part of the comprehensive treatment of these diseases. Their use pattern in psychiatric practice has changed dramatically in recent years. Mental disorders require long-term treatment. Therefore, it is crucial to study the prescribing practices of these groups of drugs. This study aims to assess drug use patterns using the WHO/INRUD Core Prescribing Indicators. Patients of both genders and ages with mental illness and prescription psychiatric drugs were evaluated from the outpatient department of the Psychiatry Unit (OPD). The prescription data were collected and analyzed using the indicators recommended by the WHO/INRUD. The data were analyzed using Microsoft Excel-2007. The percentage and average values of the variables were compared. A total of 655 prescriptions were analyzed. Male patients (54.96%) were more than women (45.04%). The morbidity profile included schizophrenia (37.86%), alcohol use disorder (18.78%), major depressive disorder (11.30%), anxiety disorder (10.23%), bipolar disorder (4.88%), and others (16.95%). The newer antipsychotic were the most commonly prescribed drugs (particularly olanzapine), along with a central anticholinergic (trihexyphenidyl) and a benzodiazepine (lorazepam). The percentage of drugs prescribed with generic names was 39.80%, and that of drugs prescribed by NLEM was 48.49%. The average number of drugs prescribed per prescription was 2.58. This study's Index of Rational Prescribing (IRDP) was 3.87, whereas the optimal score was 5. Prescriptions were complete, and principles of rational prescribing were followed, except for a low generic prescribing rate.