The quality and safety of prescribed drugs can be assessed using prescribing safety indicators (PSIs). This study aimed to estimate the prevalence of PSIs of oral non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) at primary care clinics of a tertiary care hospital in Saudi Arabia and to identify the risk factors associated with positive PSIs for patients. In this retrospective chart review study, data from the medical records of 450 patients aged ≥18 years, who were prescribed oral NSAIDs, were reviewed and collected manually. Seven PSIs were chosen and defined as follows: prescription of an oral NSAID to any patient with a peptic ulcer; aged ≥75 years; aged ≥65 years with a glomerular filtration rate <60; heart failure; co-prescribed warfarin; co-prescribed aspirin or clopidogrel; or co-prescribed angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor/angiotensin II receptor blocker and a diuretic. Patients with positive indicators are at risk of harm from high-risk prescribing. The overall period prevalence of PSIs is 153/450 (34%; 95% CI 29.60−38.39). The overall proportion of PSIs is 202/431 (46.9%; 95% CI 42.12−51.61). The most common safety indicators were for NSAIDs prescribed to patients with heart failure and patients aged ≥65 years with a glomerular filtration rate <60. The elderly and patients using polypharmacy are at increased risk of having at least one positive PSI (OR 5.22; 95% CI 3.32−8.21, p-value < 0.001 and OR 2.97; 95% CI 1.17−7.55, p-value 0.022, respectively). Patients at risk of harm from high-risk NSAID prescriptions are common in primary care. The elderly and patients on polypharmacy are at increased risk of having at least one positive PSI. Therefore, when NSAIDs are prescribed, it is recommended to weigh the benefits versus the risks for high-risk patients, such as the elderly and those with multiple-drug therapy.
Keywords: adults; electronic health records; non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs; prescribing safety indicators; prevalence; primary care clinic; primary healthcare; risk factors.