Drugs with Narrow Therapeutic Index As Indicators in the Risk Management of Hospitalised Patients
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Blix HS, Viktil KK, Moger TA, Reikvam A. Drugs with narrow therapeutic index as indicators in the risk management of hospitalised patients. Pharmacy Practice (Internet) 2010 Jan-Mar;8(1):50-55. Original Research Drugs with narrow therapeutic index as indicators in the risk management of hospitalised patients Hege S. BLIX, Kirsten K. VIKTIL, Tron A. MOGER, Aasmund REIKVAM. Received (first version): 11-Sep-2009 Accepted: 18-Jan-2010 ABSTRACT* is a well-suited tool for characterising the risk Drugs with narrow therapeutic index (NTI-drugs) are attributed to various drugs. drugs with small differences between therapeutic and toxic doses. The pattern of drug-related Keywords: Clinical Pharmacy Information Systems. problems (DRPs) associated with these drugs has Drug Toxicity. Inpatients. Norway. not been explored. Objective: To investigate how, and to what extent drugs, with a narrow therapeutic index (NTI-drugs), MEDICAMENTOS DE MARGEN as compared with other drugs, relate to different TERAPÉUTICO ESTRECHO COMO types of drug-related problems (DRPs) in INDICADORES DE GESTIÓN DE RIESGO hospitalised patients. Methods: Patients from internal medicine and EN PACIENTES HOSPITALIZADOS rheumatology departments in five Norwegian hospitals were prospectively included in 2002. RESUMEN Clinical pharmacists recorded demographic data, Los medicamentos con estrecho margen terapéutico drugs used, medical history and laboratory data. (NTI) son medicamentos con pequeñas diferencias Patients who used NTI-drugs (aminoglycosides, entre las dosis terapéuticas y tóxicas. No se han ciclosporin, carbamazepine, digoxin, digitoxin, explorado los problemas relacionados con flecainide, lithium, phenytoin, phenobarbital, medicamentos (DRPs) de estos medicamentos. rifampicin, theophylline, warfarin) were compared Objetivo: Investigar cómo y cuanto se relacionan with patients not using NTI-drugs. Occurrences of los tipos de problemas relacionados con eight different types of DRPs were registered after medicamentos de estrecho margen terapéutico con reviews of medical records and assessment by los de otros medicamentos en pacientes multidisciplinary hospital teams. The drug risk ratio, hospitalizados. defined as number of DRPs divided by number of Métodos: Se incluyeron prospectivamente en 2002 times the drug was used, was calculated for the los pacientes de medicina interna y reumatología de various drugs. 5 hospitales noruegos. Farmacéuticos clínicos Results: Of the 827 patients included, 292 patients registraron los datos demográficos, medicamentos (35%) used NTI-drugs. The NTI-drugs were utilizados, historial médico y datos de laboratorio. significantly more often associated with DRPs than Los pacientes que usaban NTI (aminoglucósidos, the non-NTI-drugs, 40% versus 19% of the times ciclosporina, carbamazepina, digoxina, digitoxina, they were used. The drug risk ratio was 0.50 for flecainamida, litio, fenitoina, fenobarbital, NTI-drugs and 0.20 for non-NTI-drugs. Three rifampicina, teofilina, warfarina) se compararon categories of DRPs were significantly more con pacientes que no usaban NTI. Se registraron las frequently found for NTI-drugs: non-optimal dose, apariciones de los 8 tipos de DRPs después de drug interaction, and need for monitoring. revisiones de los registros médicos y evaluación del Conclusion: DRPs were more frequently associated equipo multidisciplinario del hospital. Se calculó with NTI-drugs than with non-NTI-drugs, but the para los varios medicamentos el ratio de riesgo de excess occurrence was solely related to three of the medicamento, definido como el número de DRP eight DRP categories recorded. The drug risk ratio dividido por el número de veces que se uso el medicamento. Resultados: De los 827 pacientes incluidos, 292 * Hege S. BLIX. PhD, MSc in Pharmacy. Lovisenberg (35%) utilizaron NTI. Los NTI estaban Diakonale Hospital Pharmacy, Oslo / Department of significativamente más asociados a DRP que los no Pharmacotherapeutics, Faculty of Medicine, University of NTI, 40% contra 19% de las veces que se Oslo / Department of Pharmacoepidemiology, Norwegian utilizaron. El ratio de riesgo de medicamento fue de Institute of Public Health. Oslo (Norway). 0,50 para los NTI y de 0,20 para los no-NTI. Tres Kirsten K. VIKTIL. PhD, MSc in Pharmacy. categorías de DRP que se encontraron más Diakonhjemmet Hospital Pharmacy / Department of significativamente en los NTI: dosis no-óptima, Pharmacotherapeutics, Faculty of Medicine, University of interacción medicamentosa, y necesidad de Oslo. Oslo (Norway). Tron A. MOGER. PhD, MSc in Statistics. Institute of Basic monitorización. Medical Sciences, Department of Biostatistics, University Conclusión: Los DRP estaban más frecuentemente of Oslo. Oslo (Norway). asociados a medicamentos NTI que a los no-NTI, Aasmund REIKVAM. Professor, PhD, MD, FESC. pero el exceso de aparición de DRP estaba Department of Pharmacotherapeutics, Faculty of relacionado solamenrte con tres de las ocho Medicine, University of Oslo. Oslo (Norway). 50 www.pharmacypractice.org (ISSN: 1886-3655) Blix HS, Viktil KK, Moger TA, Reikvam A. Drugs with narrow therapeutic index as indicators in the risk management of hospitalised patients. Pharmacy Practice (Internet) 2010 Jan-Mar;8(1):50-55. categorías de DRP. El ratio de riesgo de nearly all hospitalised patients (estimated to at least medicamento es una herramienta apropiada para 95%) were captured and recruited to the study. In caracterizar el riesgo atribuido a diversos this way, selection bias should have been avoided. medicamentos. Emergency departments were not included. Readmitted patients were excluded. Palabras clave: Sistemas de información de farmacia clínica. Toxicidad de medicamentos. The patients were followed prospectively during Hospitalizados. Noruega. their hospital stay. Clinical pharmacists collected the data in a uniform way using a standard data recording form that had been designed, tested, and found applicable for the participating departments. Data were collected from medical charts, medical records, multidisciplinary team meetings with INTRODUCTION physicians and nurses, and also during contact with patients. The information collected was entered into Drug-related problems (DRPs) have been found to a database constructed for the study. be associated with increased morbidity, mortality and health costs.1-3 Therefore, preventing DRPs The following data were recorded for each patient: would benefit both patients and society. Drugs with age, gender, presenting complaints, all drugs used a narrow therapeutic index (NTI-drugs) are drugs at admittance and during hospital stay, medical with small differences between their therapeutic and history, and results of laboratory tests. Further, toxic doses, implying that small changes in dosage specific factors that are assumed to increase the or interactions with other drugs could cause adverse risk for DRPs were recorded. These were: the use effects. Although an universally accepted definition of 5 or more drugs at admission), severely reduced of NTI-drugs has not been agreed upon, the renal function (glomerular filtration rate below 30 4 ml/min as calculated by the Modification of Diet in definitions used in the literature do not vary much. 6 Moreover, despite the lack of definite lists of NTI- Renal Disease (MDRD) formula), reduced liver drugs, the understanding of which drugs should function (aspartate amino transferase or alanine belong to the NTI group are by and large similar aminotransferase three times above normal values), among drug experts. confirmed diabetes mellitus, cardiac failure. NTI-drugs have been shown to be a major cause of The drugs were classified according to the ATC- emergency department visits.5 Many patients classification system, which classify drugs admitted to hospitals are severely ill and have according to their anatomical, therapeutic and conditions that may influence the pharmacokinetics chemical properties and is used among others by the WHO Collaborating Centre for International and pharmacodynamics of drugs administered to 7 them. Accordingly, hospitalisation might increase Drug Monitoring (the Uppsala Centre). the risk of DRPs, and patients using NTI-drugs are Drugs with a narrow therapeutic index probably at particular risk. However, the relationship between use of NTI-drugs and occurrence of The therapeutic window of a certain drug reflects the concentration range that provides efficacy different DRPs in hospitalised patients is not known. 4 The study aimed to investigate how and to what without unacceptable toxicity. Narrow therapeutic extent NTI-drugs, as compared with other drugs, index (NTI) drugs have a narrow therapeutic are associated with DRPs in hospitalised patients window, hence doses must be titrated carefully and and, furthermore, to develop a tool for the tight monitoring is usually required. Generally calculation of risk for DRPs. approved lists of NTI-drugs are not available in the literature, but in general, drugs having a small difference between plasma concentration range METHODS resulting in efficacy and toxicity are named NTI- 4 Patients and design drugs. We defined the following drugs to be NTI- drugs: aminoglycosides, ciclosporin, A prospective multicentre design was applied. The carbamazepine, digoxin, digitoxin, flecainide, study was approved by the Regional Committee for lithium, phenytoin, phenobarbital, rifampicin, Medical Research Ethics. From May to December theophylline and warfarin. The drugs were divided 2002, clinical pharmacists enrolled patients into