SYMPTOMATIC DRUG UTILIZATION PATTERN IN OTORHINOLARYNGOLOGY DEPARTMENT AT A TERTIARY CARE HOSPITAL: A CROSS SECTIONAL STUDY

Dr. Divyashree N.*, Shahana T. P. and Shamsia Sahar.

ABSTRACT

Background: Ear, nose and throat (ENT) infections are prevalent clinical issues that affect the general population and are a significant contributor to morbidity and senility. A further impairment of balance is caused by ear problems. Nasal conditions can alter the features of the face and make it difficult to breathe and taste. Airway patency may be at risk and speech may be hampered by diseases of the throat. Acute and chronic suppurative otitis media, upper respiratory tract infections, and other ENT conditions are frequent. Antimicrobials, among other medications, are used to treat ENT conditions; nevertheless, improper antibiotic use is a serious issue because it can result in the emergence of drug resistance. In order to reduce its side effects and maximize its therapeutic value, it becomes necessary to modify prescription patterns over time and to change usage habits accordingly. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to review the medications that the ENT department physician at a Tertiary Care Hospital prescribes. Objective: To outline the drug use trends in the Mandya, Karnataka, tertiary care hospital's ENT outpatient department (OPD). Methodology: A cross-sectional study was conducted. The research took place for around six months. Patients who visited the ENT OPD and met the inclusion criteria had their pertinent data obtained from their prescriptions. Results: The ENT Outpatient Department of the MIMS Teaching Hospital in Mandya conducted this investigation. 240 ENT department visitors who met the inclusion and exclusion criteria were included in the study. The information required from the patient's prescription was entered into an accurate patient profile form. Among the 240 patients, 114 (47.50%) were men and 126 (52.50%) were women. In accordance with this study, females are more likely than males to encounter ENT illnesses. In our research, patients between the age of 18 and 29 represented the majority of patients who visited the ENT department, with 65 (27.08%), followed by patients between the ages of 30 and 39 with 54 (22.5%), 40 to 49 with 47 (19.58%), 50 to 59 with 38 (15.84%), and those over 60 with 36 (15%). When the symptoms were investigated, 83 people reported throat pain, 65 reported ear pain, 58 reported discharge from the ears, 27 reported a cold or nasal obstruction and so on. Acute pharyngitis was the most frequent diagnosis, followed by acute suppurative otitis media (19.1%) and chronic suppurative otitis media (12.6%). Allergic Rhinitis (11.25%), Acute Rhinitis (10.83%), Acute Tonsillitis(6.25%), Otomycosis (3.33%),Otitis externa (2.91%),Acute Pharyngotonsiliitis (2.5%), Acute Rhinosinusitis(2.08%), Chronic Rhinosinusitis(1.66%), while the least common diagnoses were Allergic Rhinosinusitis (0.83%), Chronic Tonsillitis (0.83%), Acute Laryngitis (0.83%). Amoxicillin+Clavulanate was found to be the most frequently prescribed antibiotic (49.24%), followed by Cefixime (32.49%), Cefadroxil (7.11%), Ciprofloxacin (5.08%), Azithromycin (2.52%), Metronidazole, Cefpodoxime, and Mupirocin (1.02%), and Linezolid (0.50%) was found to be the least frequently prescribed antibiotic. Conclusion: Our study focuses primarily on the prescription practices and drug usage in the otorhinolaryngology department of our hospital. Specifically, it focused on the percentage of each class of antibiotics that were administered, the antibiotic combinations that were prescribed, and the medications that were prescribed for each type of organ infection. Most medications were prescribed by their generic names and given to patients at no cost by the hospital pharmacy, which is a positive development that should be commended. The WHO Essential medicine list, India 2021, included almost all of the medications supplied in oral formulation. In the study populations, steroid prescriptions were less common. This is a very positive development. Therefore, ongoing educational initiatives like pharmacovigilance sensitization by the medical college's pharmacology department may further encourage sane prescription.

Keywords: Antibiotic, ENT, Drug utilization pattern.