Drug surveillance data in a Canadian hospital
Borda, I.T.; Napke, E.; Stapleton, C.
Canadian Medical Association Journal 114(6): 517-522
1976
ISSN/ISBN: 0008-4409 PMID: 1260589 Document Number: 108170
Comparison of results of a Canadian hospital-based drug surveillance program with data from centres in the United States and Israel showed no important difference in the rate of drug exposures or adverse reactions. Drugs for symptomatic relief were frequently used in the Canadian centre. Women received more drugs and had more adverse reactions than men. Life-threatening and potentially fatal reactions were caused by commonly used drugs; autopsy findings may detect previously unsuspected relations between drug events and mechanisms of death. Voluntary reporting and intensive monitoring are both important in the field of adverse drug reactions.