Potential Drug-Drug Interactions in Hospitalized Medical Patients: Data From Low Resource Settings

Introduction Adverse events related to Drug-Drug Interactions (DDIs) are among the few common reasons for hospitalization worldwide; however, they can be prevented with an efficient patient-centered system. Different mechanisms have successfully limited the prevalence of DDIs in developed countries. There are limited data regarding DDIs from limited-resource settings. Furthermore, there is no cost-effective system that has shown promising results in preventing them in this setting. This study aims to assess the frequency of potential DDIs in a low-resource setting and to check its association with different factors such as poly-pharmacy and demographics. Methods Through this cross-sectional study, drug charts of patients admitted to a medical unit in November 2019 were analyzed using a structured questionnaire. A list of drugs co-prescribed to each patient was entered into the Medscape Drug Interaction checker to calculate the frequency and severity of potential DDIs. Results The mean age of patients was 49 years, and on average, seven drugs were prescribed to each patient. Among 100 analyzed prescriptions, 400 potential DDIs were identified with a mean of 4±5.42 per patient. According to Medscape interaction checker classification, 2 DDIs were contraindicated, 28 were serious, 246 required close monitoring, and 124 were minor. The most frequently encountered drug interaction was "spironolactone with furosemide." There was a significant correlation of the occurrence of potential DDIs with increased numbers of prescribed drugs. Conclusion Our patient population was prescribed more drugs per patient than calculated in other settings. Poly-pharmacy is an independent risk factor for DDIs. Lastly, advancing age exposes patients to poly-pharmacy, and therefore, they are at a higher risk of developing DDIs.