Abstract

Objective:

Drug-drug interaction (DDI) is related with complications and diminished efficacy of medications throughout the treatment process. Intensive care units (ICU) involve patients who are at elevated risk of potential drug-drug interactions (pDDI).

Materials and Methods:

Here, we identified potential DDIs in similar patient groups in ICUs in Turkey. Invitations were sent to 20 hospitals in Turkey for a multicenter point prevalence study. Patient orders were determined for potential DDI using the Lexi Interact Online Interaction Checker software. Of 236 patients whose data were collected, patients <18 years of age, those <5 drugs in their drug order, and those with incomplete data were excluded. The remaining 194 patients were included in the study.

Results:

A total 684 pDDIs were detected, of which 92 (13.4%) were major, 531 (77.6%) were moderate, and 61 (9%) were minor interactions. There was at least one drug interaction in 159 (81.9%) patients. A notable disparity was observed in the quantity of drugs in the 159 patients with drug interactions and those in the 36 patients without drug interactions (p<0.001). A substantial correlation was detected between the quantity of medications and the incidence of interactions among patients experiencing drug interactions (p<0.001, r=0.707).

Conclusion:

No significant correlation was found between the length of stay in ICU and the number of drugs or the number of drug interactions (p=0.216, r=0.092; p=0.284, r=-0.080, respectively). The increased risk of pDDI due to the use of multiple drugs was observed in ICU patients.

Keywords: Drug interactions, intensive care unit, adverse drug reactions

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Copyright and license

Copyright © 2023 The Author(s). This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.

How to cite?

1.
Gülen D, Dağdelen MŞ, Ceylan İ, Kelebek Girgin N. Potential Drug-drug Interactions in Intensive Care Units in Turkey: A Point Prevalence Study. Turk J Intensive Care. 2023;21(2):93-99. https://doi.org/10.4274/tybd.galenos.2022.32932