Background: Proton Pump Inhibitors (PPIs) are the first line agents in the treatment of gastro-esophageal reflux disease (GERD). The efficiency and safety profile of PPIs have driven to its over-utilization and the protracted recipients are targets to its long-term adverse such as chronic kidney disease (CKD), Clostridium difficile infection (CDI) and community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) etc. Therefore, the study was intended to explore the PPI utilization patterns in GERD patients in an Indian tertiary-care hospital.
Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study was carried out at the Department of Gastroenterology, in a private tertiary care hospital, Bangalore, for a period of six months. The objective of the study was to identify the risk factors of GERD and prescribing trends of proton pump inhibitors in GERD patients.
Results: Among the 139 patients diagnosed with GERD, 66% were males. GERD was found to be more prevalent in the age group of 25-44 years. The GERD patients reported a relationship between the severity of disease and the following risk factors, namely, Smoking, OR: 0.446, alcoholism, OR: 1.26, BMI>24.9,OR:1.13 and mixed diet, OR:0.486. Rabeprazole (36.4%) was the commonly prescribed PPI. PPI combination therapy was prescribed in 56.11% of patients, followed by single therapy in 39.5% patients.
Conclusion: Creating awareness among the clinicians and patients on appropriate use of PPIs can reduce the additional economic burden and improve the health-related quality of life. Focusing on risk factors to identify preventive measures will help in decreasing the incident rate of GERD.
Mathew JS, Nandini MRV, Saraswathy GR, Subeesh V, Maheswari E. Determinants of Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease (GERD) severity and Utilization of Proton Pump Inhibitors Among GERD Patients: A Cross-Sectional Study. J App Pharm Sci, 2017; 7 (11): 172-176.
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