RESUMO
Background: Drug-drug interactions are quite prevalent, especially in the geriatric population with comorbidities. It affects the effectiveness, safety, and tolerability of the medications they use. Aims and Objectives: This study aims to analyze and identify potential drug-drug interactions (pDDIs) in hypertensive patients using Medscape databases. Materials and Methods: A prospective and observational study was conducted in the Hypertension clinic of KMC, Chennai, for 3 months during November 2019–January 2020. Hypertensive patients of both sexes attending hypertension clinics with an age of more than 18 years and taking more than two antihypertensive drugs were included in the study. The use of Medscape databases enabled the appropriate data to be gathered and evaluated for pDDIs. Results: Three hundred patients in all were enrolled for the trial. One hundred and forty out of the 300 patients had pDDIs. Out of 140 patients, the majority (55%) were between the ages of 40 and 60. Males (56.4%) had a higher prevalence of pDDIs than females (43.6%). Atenolol, enalapril, and furosemide were the most frequently used medications in the present study that caused pDDIs, accounting for 29.8%, 19.5%, and 18.6%, respectively. Conclusion: The prevalence of pDDIs was found to be 46.6% overall, and an increase in comorbidities and polypharmacy were revealed to be important risk factors for the emergence of several pDDIs. Most of the antihypertensives were shown to interact frequently with calcium carbonate.
RESUMO
Objective: To an assessment of potential drug-drug interactions in hypertensive patients in a tertiary care hospital. Methods: A prospective, observational study was conducted at a tertiary care hospital, Erode for a period of 8 mo. A sample of 480 patients was assessed for PDDIs using drug checker in Micromedex®-2.7. Results: A total of 430 patients were analyzed and it was found to be 396 (82.50%) hypertensive patients had PDDIs, and a sum total of 1160 PDDIs were observed. Potential drug-drug interactions (PDDIs) higher in female hypertensive patients [255 (64.39%)] compared to males. Incidences of PDDIs were found to be higher in the age group of 60-70 y were [177 (44.69%)] and incidences of interactions based on the duration of (4-6 d) hospital stays were 272 (68.68%). Moreover, 49.24% of patients were found to be prescribed with more than 7 drugs, with higher incidences of PDDIs. Some of the most common drug interacting pair was between aspirin and clopidogrel combination observed in 325 PDDIs in the major, with pharmacodynamics in nature. Conclusion: Clinical pharmacist ought to have the role of regular monitoring of drug therapy in identifying and preventing the medications that have the potential to cause drug-drug interactions, thereby minimizing the undesirable outcomes in drug medical care and improving the quality of care.