The assessment of drug interactions in governmental prescriptions

In this study, 5886 prescriptions from official associations including two or more drugs prescribed were evaluated for the possible drug interactions. In four percent of the prescriptions, there were drug interactions. As the drugs prescribed on a prescription increased in number, the frequency of a probable drug interaction increased accordingly. In our study we were able to achieve only one prescription prepared for a patient and the total number of the drugs prescribed was restricted up to five in one prescription. So our findings do not reflect the whole risk of a drug interaction which a patient is faced to, because it is unknown if the patient used any other medicines at the mean time. Especially in elderly people, the number of the drugs used is inreased, that means one should have more to be careful at, when considerig the drug interaction possibilities those may occur among the patients above a certain age. Nearly half of drug interaction seen is associated with cardiovascular drugs. The doctors are not fully aware of the possible drug interactions which may occur when prescribing a receipt. Besides there is not any warning label on the prescriptions pointing out the drug interaction risks. The results of the interactions we are trying to point out here may vary from small variations of the drug plasma levels to serious cardiac problems, unwished pregnancies and even to death. The doctors and the pharmacists, the two important groups of the healthcare system can solve this complex problem easily by also using the means of technology. Drug interactions can be minimized when doctors pay more attention on the subject when risk factors are figured out more carefully.