Table 5 Causes of medication related problems
MRP categories and causes | Total n(%) | Number of drugs | |
|---|---|---|---|
5–9 n(%) |  ≥ 10 n(%) | ||
Unnecessary medication therapy | |||
 No medical indication | 129(28.3) | 40(27.0) | 89(28.9) |
 Multiple medications used for a condition that requires single medication | 20(4.4) | 10(6.8) | 10(3.2) |
 Nondrug therapy more appropriate | 3(0.7) | 0(0) | 3(1.0) |
 Treating avoidable adverse drug event | 3(0.7) | 1(0.7) | 2(0.6) |
Needs additional medication therapy | |||
 Medical condition requires the initiation of medication therapy | 7(1.5) | 4(2.7) | 3(1.0) |
 Preventive medication therapy is required to reduce the risk of developing a new condition | 8(1.8) | 4(2.7) | 4(1.3) |
 Medical condition requires additional pharmacotherapy to attain synergistic or additive effects | 10(2.2) | 4(2.7) | 6(1.9) |
Ineffective medication | |||
 Condition refractory to drug | 10(2.2) | 2(1.4) | 8(2.6) |
 Dosage form inappropriate | 6(1.3) | 0(0) | 6(1.9) |
 Medication product is not an effective product for the indication being treated | 5(1.1) | 1(0.7) | 4(1.3) |
Dosage too low | |||
 Dose is too low to produce the desired response | 116(25.4) | 36(24.3) | 80(26.0) |
 Dosage interval is too infrequent to produce the desired response | 10(2.2) | 5(3.4) | 5(1.6) |
 Medication interaction reduces the amount of active medication available | 0(0) | 0(0) | 0(0) |
 Duration of medication therapy is too short to produce the desired response | 8(1.8) | 1(0.7) | 7(2.3) |
Adverse drug event | |||
 Medication product causes an undesirable reaction that is not dose-related | 13(2.9) | 4(2.7) | 9(2.9) |
 Safer medication product is required because of risk factors | 9(2.0) | 3(2.0) | 6(1.9) |
 Drug interaction causes an undesirable reaction that is not dose-related | 1(0.2) | 1(0.7) | 0(0) |
 Dosage increase or decrease too fast | 1(0.2) | 1(0.7) | 0(0) |
 Medication product causes an allergic reaction | 1(0.2) | 0(0) | 1(0.3) |
 Medication product is contraindicated because of risk factors | 13(2.9) | 5(3.4) | 8(2.6) |
 Inappropriate dosage form is used | 5(1.1) | 0(0) | 5(1.6) |
Dosage too high | |||
 Dose too high | 46(10.1) | 14(9.5) | 32(10.4) |
 Dosing interval is too short | 29(6.4) | 10(6.8) | 19(6.2) |
 Duration of medication therapy is too long | 3(0.7) | 2(1.4) | 1(0.3) |
 Drug interaction occurs resulting in a toxic reaction to the medication product | 0(0) | 0(0) | 0(0) |
 Dose of the medication was administered too rapidly | 0(0) | 0(0) | 0(0) |
Total | 456 | 148 | 308 |