Study of prescription-indication of antivirals for herpesviruses in a Colombian population. A cross-sectional study v1

Introduction:Herpesviruses are among the most common pathogens worldwide. Objective: Todetermine the prescription patterns and indications for the use of antiviralsfor herpesviruses in a group of patients from Colombia. Methods: This was across-sectional study on the use of antivirals for treating outpatients withherpesviruses between November 2023 and January 2024 in a Colombian populationdatabase. The approved and unapproved indications were determined according tothe records of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the NationalInstitute of Food and Drug Surveillance (INVIMA) of Colombia. Descriptiveanalysis was carried out. Results: In total, 17,275patients were identified, with an average age of 47.5 ± 21.2 years, and 59.1%were women. The most frequently prescribed antiviral was acyclovir, and themost frequently used antiviral agent was herpes zoster (47.6%). In total, 9.8%of the prescriptions were used for unapproved indications, with vaginitis/vulvitis/vulvovaginitis(3.2%) standing out. In total, 55.2% were treated only with oral dosage forms,24.6% with oral and topical dosage forms, and 20.2% with only topical dosageforms. The concomitant prescription of systemic (17.0%) and topical (8.5%)antimicrobial agents was common. Conclusions:Acyclovir was the most commonly prescribed antiviral for the management of herpeszoster. Adherence to clinical practice guidelines was not adequate in somecases, indicating unapproved uses and uses in entities where efficacy is verydoubtful or limited, especially with topical pharmaceutical forms. Theconcomitant prescription of other antimicrobials was common.