Potentially Inappropriate Prescribing in Children

Abstract

There has been increasing focus on the quality of primary care for children with large scale population studies in the US and Australia reporting adherence to clinical guidelines of approximately 40 to 60%1,2. In particular, there is limited evidence on the safety and effectiveness of prescribing for children2. Medicines are generally considered appropriate in an adult population when they have a clear, evidence-based indication, are well tolerated in the majority of patients and are cost effective. Medicines or prescribing patterns that do not fit this description can be considered inappropriate or potentially inappropriate and may include misprescribing, over prescribing and underprescribing3. Potential consequences for children may be inadequate chronic disease management and unplanned hospital admissions and even rarely can result in preventable deaths4.