A Study on Drug Utilization Pattern in Sickle Cell Disease in a Tertiary Care Hospital

Abstract

Background: Sickle cell disease (SCD) is an inherited disorder caused by a defect in the gene for hemoglobin. Patients can have one defective gene (sickle cell trait) or two defective genes (sickle cell disease) and globally affects 1,00,000 people with 3,000 affected new born each year in US. The management of the symptoms of SCD includes the use of folate supplements, hydroxy urea, analgesics and antibiotics. Aim: The aim of the study is to identify the drug utilization pattern in the management of patients with SCD in a tertiary care hospital. Methods: This is a prospective study carried out in general medicine and pediatrics ward of the hospital from November 2018 to April 2019. The information was collected from the case notes by the specially designed data collection form which included the demographic data, associated co-morbid conditions and list of prescribed drugs. Data was analyzed using descriptive analysis. Results: A total of 76 SCD patients with the mean age of 12.6 ± 11.3 years and 52.6 % of the patients were male. A total of 515 drugs were prescribed with an average of 6.7 drugs per prescription. Conclusion: High rate of folic acid is seen in the prescription with SCD patients followed by hydroxyurea and other hematinics. Our study recommends that WHO/ National Center for Biotechnology information reference guide to improve the patient quality of life.