Evaluation of Factors Contributing to Potential Drug-Drug Interactions in Cardiovascular Disease Management: A Retrospective Study

A retrospective analysis was conducted to assess potential drug-drug interactions (pDDIs) in the management of cardiovascular diseases, evaluating 500 prescriptions from hospitalized patients between January 1 and April 1, 2023. Using Medscape online software for the identification of drug-drug interactions (DDIs) and SPSS version 21 for statistical analysis, the study documented a 93% occurrence rate of pDDIs across the prescriptions. These interactions were categorized as serious (15% of cases, n=760, maximum per encounter: 4, mean: 1.52 ± 1.064), significant (75.6% of cases, n=3855, maximum per encounter: 30, mean: 7.71 ± 4.583), and minor (9.5% of cases, n=485, maximum per encounter: 4, mean: 0.95 ± 1.025). On average, 9.5 medications were prescribed per patient. Factors significantly associated with the incidence of pDDIs included age (r= 0.921, P < 0.01), presence of concurrent diseases (r= 0.782, P < 0.01), length of hospital stay (r= 0.559, P < 0.01), and the number of prescribed drugs (r= 0.472, P < 0.01). The most frequent interacting combinations were identified, with Clopidogrel + Enoxaparin (38.15%, n=290) and Enoxaparin + Aspirin (26.92%, n=210) being the most common, followed by other notable combinations. The study recorded adverse drug reactions in 15 patients. This investigation highlights a significant prevalence of pDDIs, particularly in cases of polypharmacy among cardiovascular patients. It underscores the critical need for systematic analysis and vigilant monitoring of prescriptions prior to drug administration by healthcare professionals.