Abstract
Assessment of Prescription Pattern of Antipsychotic Medications in a Psychiatry Inpatient Setting of a Secondary Care Hospital of United Arab Emirates
Author(s): Haneen A.R Aburamadan, Sathvik Belagodu Sridhar*, Talaat Matar Tadross and Atiqulla ShariffBackground: Analysis and evaluation of the prescribing pattern can improve clinical outcomes. There is a lack of available data regarding antipsychotic prescribing patterns in psychiatric in-patients in the United Arab Emirates.
Aim: This study aimed to assess the prescription pattern of antipsychotic medications in a psychiatry in-patient setting of a secondary care hospital in the UAE.
Methods: This prospective, observational study included psychiatric in-patients receiving antipsychotic therapy. We assessed the type, dose, route of administration, monotherapy, and combination therapy of antipsychotics used.
Results: One hundred and seventy patients were enrolled in the study. Bipolar I Disorder was diagnosed in the majority of the cases (21.8%), followed by schizophrenia (17.1%) and substance use disorder (10.6%). The most frequently prescribed antipsychotic drug was olanzapine (38.2%), followed by quetiapine (15.2%) and risperidone (8.8%). Olanzapine plus quetiapine (5.2%) and olanzapine plus risperidone (4.1) were the most prescribed combination therapy. Seven of the eleven antipsychotics used in our study had a PDD to DDD range of 0.7-1.3, which was considered adequate.
Conclusion: The study findings demonstrated a distinct prescription pattern for in-patients setting in RAK, UAE. The psychiatrist preferred to prescribe second-generation antipsychotic drugs over first-generation antipsychotic drugs.