Abstract

Background: A wide range of medications are now available for the treatment of asthma, and selection of optimal treatment is essential.

Aims and Objective: To evaluate the drug-prescribing trend of antiasthmatic drug in a tertiary-care hospital.

Materials and Methods: The prescription data from 130 patients with asthmapatients were studied using a prescription auditing pro forma. Data were recorded from the patients attending the outpatient department of Hi-Tech Medical College and Hospital from February to July 2014. Verbal consent was taken from the patients before filling the pro forma.

Results: During the study, 130 patients were monitored but only 100 prescriptions were included for data analysis as per the inclusion and exclusion criteria. Demographic analysis of data revealed that there were 66% men and 34% women in the study. The study showed that maximum patients with asthma belonged to 30–40 years age group. The results of this study showed that most of the patients received combination therapy as compared with individual therapy. Majority of the patients received combination therapy of beta 2 agonists and glucocorticoids via inhalational routes; 34% of the prescribed drugs are from the essential drug lists. Average drugs per prescription were 5.16, and 54% of the patients received more than four drugs. About 60% drugs were given by inhalation route, followed by oral route (38%).

Conclusion: There is need to encourage the physician to use the treatment guidelines while managing patients with asthma. In conclusion, National Asthma Education program would benefit as an initial step to improve asthma knowledge and increase awareness in the medical community on current treatment practice.

Key words: Drug Prescription Pattern; Bronchial Asthma; Antiasthmatic Drug