Public awareness and views on unlicensed use of medicines in children.
OBJECTIVE
To explore awareness and views of the general public on unlicensed use of medicines in children and on the participation of children in clinical trials.


METHODS
Members of the public completed a questionnaire survey administered by face-to-face interview in public areas in N. Ireland. The main outcome measures were the views on unlicensed use of medicines in children and on clinical trials in children.


RESULTS
One thousand participants (59.2% female) took part; 610 were parents. Most participants (86%) had no previous knowledge about unlicensed use of medicines in children. Being a parent did not influence this nor did being a parent of a child who suffered from a health problem (P > 0.05). Most participants (92%) felt that parents should be told about unlicensed use of medicines, with the doctor most frequently selected as the person who should inform parents. At the outset, only 1.8% of participants felt that the use of medicines in children was unsafe. However, having been informed about unlicensed use of medicines, this proportion increased dramatically (62.4%; P < 0.001). Views on whether participants would enter a child of their own into a clinical trial varied according to the health status of the child (P < 0.05) i.e. a child in good health (3.9%) vs a child with a life-threatening condition (41.9%).


CONCLUSIONS
There is limited public knowledge of unlicensed use of medicines in children and a general reluctance to involve children in clinical trials unless the child to be involved has a life-threatening condition.
Mukattash
T L
TL
Clinical and Practice Research Group, School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, Belfast, UK.
Millership
J S
JS
Collier
P S
PS
McElnay
J C
JC
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D035843:Biomedical Research / Q000941:ethics*; D002648:Child; D002669:Child Welfare / Q000941:ethics*; D016903:Drug Monitoring / Q000941:ethics*; D064420:Drug-Related Side Effects and Adverse Reactions; D005260:Female; D019538:Health Care Surveys; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009660:Northern Ireland; D010290:Parents / Q000523:psychology; D004364:Pharmaceutical Preparations / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D010865:Pilot Projects; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D055815:Young Adult
D004364:Pharmaceutical Preparations