AN OBSERVATIONAL STUDY ON THE AWARENESS OF ADVERSE DRUG REACTIONS DUE TO ANTIDIABETIC DRUGS AMONG COMMUNITY PHARMACISTS IN SOUTHERN PART OF KERALA

Sneha P. S.*, Renisha R. S., Soumya R. V., Pavithra J., Nithin Manohar R. and Prasobh G. R.

ABSTRACT

Diabetes mellitus (DM) is brought on by a lack of insulin production, injury to pancreatic cells or insulin resistance brought on by inadequate insulin utilization. This is an observational study conducted for community pharmacies at southern part of Kerala. In this study 100 community pharmacies with 156 pharmacists were selected. We observed the awareness of adverse drug reactions due to antidiabetic drugs among community pharmacists and to assess the knowledge, attitude and practice of a newer class of antidiabetic drug (GLP-1 receptor agonists) among the community pharmacists by using suitably designed questionnaire. The study shows that, while community pharmacists possess adequate knowledge and awareness of adverse drug reactions (ADRs) related to antidiabetic drugs, there is a noticeable gap in their understanding of pharmacovigilance and methods for identifying ADRs. Overall, community pharmacists showed good knowledge, attitude, and practice towards antidiabetic drugs, but targeted training programs are recommended to strengthen their expertise in pharmacovigilance and newer drug therapies.

Keywords: Diabetes mellitus, Adverse drug reactions, Antidiabetic drugs, Community pharmacists, Questionnaire, Pharmacovigilance.