Ethnic differences in drug utilization pattern during pregnancy: a cross-sectional study.
OBJECTIVE
To investigate the differences in exposure to medications in a cohort of multi-ethnic pregnant women.


METHODS
Six hundred and forty-one pregnant women of Western, Arab/Turkish and "other origins" participated in this cross-sectional study using a questionnaire in a university hospital in Brussels, Belgium. Assessment of the drug safety was done using the food and drug administration (FDA) risk classification system. Data analysis was performed using SPSS (Chicago, IL).


RESULTS
In overall cohort, 83.8% used at least one preparation (including multivitamins) during pregnancy and 37.0% of women used at least one drug (excluding multivitamins). Significantly more Western women (43.7%) used one or more medications compared to Arab/Turkish women (28.7%; p = 0.000). This difference in exposure was most pronounced for over-the-counter (OTC) drugs for occasional and pregnancy-related complaints, and was observed for potentially unsafe drugs or drugs with unknown safety. None of the women reported use of FDA X category drugs.


CONCLUSIONS
The use of drugs known to be harmful was not observed, but a higher prevalence of exposure to potentially harmful drugs (FDA C/D) was found among Western women who also consumed more OTC drugs. This highlights the need for cautious prescribing for women in the fertile age in general and for continuous monitoring of medication use during pregnancy.
Department of Pharmacology, Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Brussels, Belgium. Mohamed.Baraka2020@gmail.com
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Baraka
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Steurbaut
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Coomans
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Dupont
D000328:Adult; D001530:Belgium / Q000453:epidemiology; D002908:Chronic Disease; D015331:Cohort Studies; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004363:Drug Utilization / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005006:Ethnicity / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D011247:Pregnancy; D011248:Pregnancy Complications / Q000188:drug therapy*; D015995:Prevalence; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires