Drug-Related Problems in Emergency Department Visits and Intensive Care Units at Healthcare Facilities in Saudi Arabia: A Review of the Literature

The burden of drug-related problems (DRPs) is becoming an issue of healthcare concern. It has been responsible for many intensive care unit (ICU) admissions and emergency department (ED) visits in Saudi Arabia. We aim to summarise available data on ED visits and ICU admissions linked to DRPs in Saudi Arabia and provide recommendations for preventive measures. A systematic search of the literature was conducted using PubMed and Google Scholar databases to identify eligible studies. The review included research on ED visits and ICU admissions linked to DRPs performed in Saudi Arabia from the database’s inception to January 2020. Study selection, data extraction and assessment were performed based on the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and MetaAnalysis (PRISMA) guidelines. The initial search of literature generated 267 articles. After the study selection, 15 articles met our eligibility criteria and were included in the review. The commonly implicated DRPs were adverse drug reactions, medication non-adherence, drug overdose and drug interactions. Central nervous system drugs and cardiovascular drugs were the most frequently involved drugs. Most of these visits resulted in moderate harm. The prevalence of DRPs associated with ED visits and ICU admissions is high in Saudi Arabia. Sixteen out of a hundred ED visits and ICU admissions are related to DRPs. Therefore, the Saudi government should implement interventions to improve the awareness of rational drug use in the general public.