A review of drug utilization studies and methodologies

Abstract EN

Drug utilization is defined by the World Health Organization (WHO) as the marketing, distribution, prescription, and use of drugs in society, with special emphasis on the resulting medical, social, and economic consequences.

This article gives a concise overview of drug utilization studies.

It describes the definition, history, purposes, types, process and methods used in drug utilization studies.

The ultimate purposes of drug utilization studies are to contribute to the optimal quality of drug therapy by identifying, documenting and analyzing problems in drug utilization and monitoring the consequences of interventions.

Different types of drug utilization studies can be conducted and various methods can be used.

Special emphasis is placed in this review on consumption studies (volume, cost and the Defined Daily Dose (DDD) methodology).

The study of drug utilization continues to evolve.

The development of large computerized databases linking drug utilization to diagnoses and other lifestyle information has made drug utilization studies a powerful scientific tool for ensuring the rational and cost-effective use of drugs in society.