From Prescription Drugs to Natural Health Products: Medication Use in Canadian Infants
Limited data exist on pharmaceutical product use by infants, although available data suggests higher prevalence of use among children under 12 months of age. We conducted a descriptive study of 3050 infants recruited in the CHILD Cohort Study, a prospective, multicenter, longitudinal cohort followin...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2022-09-01
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| Series: | Children |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2227-9067/9/10/1475 |
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| author | Pascal Bedard Geoffrey L. Winsor Emma S. Garlock Meghan B. Azad Allan B. Becker Piush J. Mandhane Theo J. Moraes Malcolm R. Sears Stuart E. Turvey Padmaja Subbarao Fiona S. L. Brinkman Anita L. Kozyrskyj |
| author_facet | Pascal Bedard Geoffrey L. Winsor Emma S. Garlock Meghan B. Azad Allan B. Becker Piush J. Mandhane Theo J. Moraes Malcolm R. Sears Stuart E. Turvey Padmaja Subbarao Fiona S. L. Brinkman Anita L. Kozyrskyj |
| author_sort | Pascal Bedard |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Limited data exist on pharmaceutical product use by infants, although available data suggests higher prevalence of use among children under 12 months of age. We conducted a descriptive study of 3050 infants recruited in the CHILD Cohort Study, a prospective, multicenter, longitudinal cohort following children from pregnancy through childhood. Parents were surveyed for use of prescription and over-the-counter drugs, and natural health products (NHPs, including homeopathic products and vitamins) at 3, 6, and 12 months after delivery. By one year of age, 96.0% of children had taken at least one pharmaceutical product. Among 307 reported products, 32 were given to at least 1% of cohort infants. Vitamin D, acetaminophen, ibuprofen, topical hydrocortisone, amoxicillin, and nystatin were the most common medications and natural health products (NHPs) received, with 8/32 of the most frequently used products being NHPs. Overall, 14.7% of pharmaceutical products administered to children were off-label and 35.8% were NHPs or products without a Drug Identification Number (DIN). The use of over-the-counter medications and NHPs is common and off-label use of drugs is frequent, even in the first year of life. This study highlights the importance of conducting studies on medication use in infants, and of infant medication use monitoring by healthcare providers. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-09T20:27:07Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-48fc9d4f29ce4ca28f41fb590aad95fe |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2227-9067 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-09T20:27:07Z |
| publishDate | 2022-09-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Children |
| spelling | doaj.art-48fc9d4f29ce4ca28f41fb590aad95fe2023-11-23T23:31:34ZengMDPI AGChildren2227-90672022-09-01910147510.3390/children9101475From Prescription Drugs to Natural Health Products: Medication Use in Canadian InfantsPascal Bedard0Geoffrey L. Winsor1Emma S. Garlock2Meghan B. Azad3Allan B. Becker4Piush J. Mandhane5Theo J. Moraes6Malcolm R. Sears7Stuart E. Turvey8Padmaja Subbarao9Fiona S. L. Brinkman10Anita L. Kozyrskyj11Department of Pharmacy, CHU Sainte-Justine, Montreal, QC H3T 1C5, CanadaDepartment of Molecular Biology and Biochemistry, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, BC V5A 1S6, CanadaDepartment of Molecular Biology and Biochemistry, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, BC V5A 1S6, CanadaDepartment of Pediatrics and Child Health, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, MB R3A 1S1, CanadaDepartment of Pediatrics and Child Health, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, MB R3A 1S1, CanadaDepartment of Pediatrics, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB T6G 1C9, CanadaDepartment of Pediatrics, Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON M5G 1X8, CanadaDepartment of Medicine, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON L8P 1H6, CanadaDepartment of Pediatrics, BC Children’s Hospital and The University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC V6H 0B3, CanadaDepartment of Pediatrics, Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON M5G 1X8, CanadaDepartment of Molecular Biology and Biochemistry, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, BC V5A 1S6, CanadaDepartment of Pediatrics, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB T6G 1C9, CanadaLimited data exist on pharmaceutical product use by infants, although available data suggests higher prevalence of use among children under 12 months of age. We conducted a descriptive study of 3050 infants recruited in the CHILD Cohort Study, a prospective, multicenter, longitudinal cohort following children from pregnancy through childhood. Parents were surveyed for use of prescription and over-the-counter drugs, and natural health products (NHPs, including homeopathic products and vitamins) at 3, 6, and 12 months after delivery. By one year of age, 96.0% of children had taken at least one pharmaceutical product. Among 307 reported products, 32 were given to at least 1% of cohort infants. Vitamin D, acetaminophen, ibuprofen, topical hydrocortisone, amoxicillin, and nystatin were the most common medications and natural health products (NHPs) received, with 8/32 of the most frequently used products being NHPs. Overall, 14.7% of pharmaceutical products administered to children were off-label and 35.8% were NHPs or products without a Drug Identification Number (DIN). The use of over-the-counter medications and NHPs is common and off-label use of drugs is frequent, even in the first year of life. This study highlights the importance of conducting studies on medication use in infants, and of infant medication use monitoring by healthcare providers.https://www.mdpi.com/2227-9067/9/10/1475pediatricsdrugsmedicine and pharmaceutical industrypharmacyfamily medicinegeneral practice |
| spellingShingle | Pascal Bedard Geoffrey L. Winsor Emma S. Garlock Meghan B. Azad Allan B. Becker Piush J. Mandhane Theo J. Moraes Malcolm R. Sears Stuart E. Turvey Padmaja Subbarao Fiona S. L. Brinkman Anita L. Kozyrskyj From Prescription Drugs to Natural Health Products: Medication Use in Canadian Infants Children pediatrics drugs medicine and pharmaceutical industry pharmacy family medicine general practice |
| title | From Prescription Drugs to Natural Health Products: Medication Use in Canadian Infants |
| title_full | From Prescription Drugs to Natural Health Products: Medication Use in Canadian Infants |
| title_fullStr | From Prescription Drugs to Natural Health Products: Medication Use in Canadian Infants |
| title_full_unstemmed | From Prescription Drugs to Natural Health Products: Medication Use in Canadian Infants |
| title_short | From Prescription Drugs to Natural Health Products: Medication Use in Canadian Infants |
| title_sort | from prescription drugs to natural health products medication use in canadian infants |
| topic | pediatrics drugs medicine and pharmaceutical industry pharmacy family medicine general practice |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2227-9067/9/10/1475 |
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