Publication:

Prescription pattern for pregnant and lactating mothers, and attitude towards the safety of medicines in a tertiary hospital in Bangladesh

Background Prescription pattern of drugs particularly in the special physiological conditions, e.g., pregnancy and lactation have an impact on the mothers as well as the newborns. More specifically, the evaluation of the pattern can play a pivotal role to minimize their economic burden as well as improving their quality of life by reducing drug related toxicity. This study aims at the evaluation of the prescription pattern for the pregnant and lactating mothers for the first time in one of the largest tertiary hospitals in Bangladesh. Moreover, the perception of the patients about the safety of the medicines has also been enlightened.

Methods Data collected from 500 pregnant women and 335 lactating mothers were analyzed in the context of demographic characteristics, drug use pattern, USFDA drug risk category, and clinical complications to understand their attitude towards the safety of medicines.

Results The study suggests that the majority of the participants were aware of the safety and usage of medications during pregnancy and lactation. Moreover, the linear regression analysis clearly indicates that pregnant women were significantly associated with a higher attitude score compared to that of the lactating mothers.

Conclusions This study necessitates the requirement to implement the relevant WHO recommended core interventions and to develop a healthcare system by incorporating clinical pharmacists about the dispensing and sale of medicines in ensuring the rational use of medicines more efficiently.