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- Friday, January 31, 2003
- Pharmacotherapeutic Analysis and Prescription Pattern of Antihypertensive Drugs Dispensed at Community Pharmacies in Palestine
- Published at:Not Found
Pharmacotherapeutic Analysis and Prescription Pattern of
Antihypertensive Drugs Dispensed at Community Pharmacies in Palestine
Waleed Sweileh
College of Pharmacy, An-Najah National University, Nablus, Palestine.
E-mail: [email protected]
Received: (30/12/2002), Accepted: (25/5/2003)
Abstract
The objective of this study is to explore the influence of current therapeutic
recommendations on the prescribing trends of anti-hypertensive drugs in general
medical practice in Palestine. Five hundred and seventy four anti-hypertensive
prescriptions were analyzed. The percentage of mono-therapy prescriptions was 48.25%
and that for combinational therapy prescriptions was 51.75%. Among the mono-therapy
prescriptions,
blockers were the most commonly prescribed, while diuretics were
under-utilized. Inappropriate dose strength of atenolol was seen in mono-therapy
prescriptions. Expensive and newer angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitor drugs
(ACE-I) and calcium channel blocking drugs (CCB) were frequently seen in mono
therapy prescriptions. Among the combinational therapy, the blockers / diuretics was
most common. Irrational combinational therapy of -blockers / ACE-I was noticed. Use
of modern and new CCB, ACE-I and angiotensin II type 1 receptor antagonists (AT1-
RA) was seen in both mono therapy and combinational therapy. The overuse of
nonprefered drugs and the under-use of prefered medications is indicative that education
of JNC VI guidelines for physicians and health professionals in Palestine is needed.
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