title: Usefulness of defined daily dose and days of therapy in pediatrics and obstetrics-gynecology: a comparative analysis of antifungal drugs (2000-2001, 2005-2006, and 2010-2011).
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The objective was to describe antifungal drug use by using the number of defined daily doses (DDD)/1000 patient-days per antifungal, the number of days of therapy (DOT)/1000 patient-days per antifungal, and the mean dose in mg/kg/day per antifungal during a 10-year period.
  
  
  METHODS
  Retrospective, cross-sectional, descriptive study, in a mother-child university hospital center, with 400 pediatric beds and 100 obstetrics-gynecology beds. All inpatients who received 1 of the 7 authorized antifungals on the institution's local formulary in 2000-2001, 2005-2006, or 2010-2011 were included. Prescriptions for emergency department and outpatient clinics were excluded. The data were extracted from the patients' computerized medication profiles linked to patient admission, discharge, and transfer data. The DDD, DOT, and the mean dose in mg/kg/day were calculated for each antifungal and overall.
  
  
  RESULTS
  There was a 2.97-fold increase in the overall number of DDD/1000 patient-days, from 14.8 in 2000-2001 to 37.5 in 2005-2006 and 43.9 in 2010-2011. There was a 2.97-fold increase in the overall number of DOT/1000 patient-days, from 22.8 in 2000-2001 to 50.3 in 2005-2006 and 67.8 in 2010-2011.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  It can be difficult to compare the use of antifungal drugs among institutions, owing to numerous factors, but it gives an idea about the consumption outside the studied center. Moreover, these ratios help to evaluate the use of antifungals within a same institution. These data could be correlated among others, with resistance patterns, in order to improve our daily practice concerning antifungal prescription.
authors.affiliation: Pharmacy Practice Research Unit, CHU Sainte-Justine, Montréal, Québec, Canada.
authors.forename: Justine
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Guillot
authors.affiliation: Pharmacy Practice Research Unit, CHU Sainte-Justine, Montréal, Québec, Canada ; Pharmacy Department, CHU Sainte-Justine, Montréal, Québec, Canada.
authors.forename: Denis
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Lebel
authors.affiliation: Pharmacy Practice Research Unit, CHU Sainte-Justine, Montréal, Québec, Canada ; Pharmacy Department, CHU Sainte-Justine, Montréal, Québec, Canada.
authors.forename: Hélène
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Roy
authors.affiliation: Pediatrics Department, CHU Sainte-Justine, Montréal, Québec, Canada.
authors.forename: Philippe
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Ovetchkine
authors.affiliation: Pharmacy Practice Research Unit, CHU Sainte-Justine, Montréal, Québec, Canada ; Pharmacy Department, CHU Sainte-Justine, Montréal, Québec, Canada ; Faculty of Pharmacy, Université de Montréal, Montréal, Québec, Canada.
authors.forename: Jean-François
authors.initials: JF
authors.lastname: Bussières
keywords: antifungal agents; antimicrobial stewardship; days of therapy; defined daily dose; drug utilization