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Clinically significant potential drug-drug interactions are present in 29.2% of outpatient prescriptions, with a higher risk linked to polypharmacy, older age, and prescriptions from tertiary healthcare facilities.
A recent cross-sectional study has uncovered alarming rates of potential drug-drug interactions (pDDIs) among routinely dispensed outpatient prescriptions. The findings highlight a growing public health concern linked to medication safety, irrational prescribing, polypharmacy, and preventable drug-related complications.
Adverse drug reactions (ADRs) and treatment failures are often driven by inappropriate prescribing, placing patients at risk of preventable hospitalizations. Among these risks, pDDIs stand out as avoidable threats to therapy safety and effectiveness. This study investigated outpatient prescriptions in 6 community pharmacies in Asmara, Eritrea, to map medication use, measure the occurrence of clinically significant pDDIs, and uncover the factors contributing to these interactions.
Nuru Abdu and other researchers analyzed 417 outpatient prescriptions covering 830 medications. Prescriptions were selected through stratified random sampling, and pDDIs were screened using the Lexi-comp interaction tool. Logistic regression in IBM SPSS (v26) was then used to identify key predictors of clinically significant pDDIs, including patient age, prescription size, and the level of the healthcare facility.
Out of prescriptions with two or more medications, 29.2% (95% confidence interval (CI): 23.7–34.7) had clinically significant pDDIs. Diclofenac (22.6%) and ciprofloxacin (10.9%) were the most common drugs linked to pDDIs, while omeprazole (8.4%) and amoxicillin (8.1%) were most frequently prescribed. The analysis identified four major predictors escalating the likelihood of clinically important drug interactions, as depicted in Table 1:
Thus, clinically significant pDDIs remain a common challenge in outpatient settings. Enhanced surveillance, continuous education, and supportive regulatory measures are vital to preventing drug-related complications and safeguarding patients.
Scientific Reports
Evaluation of potential drug-drug interactions and its determinants among outpatient prescriptions in six community chain pharmacies in Asmara, Eritrea: a cross-sectional study
Nuru Abdu et al.
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