Improving Information on Maternal Medication Use by Linking Prescription Data to Congenital Anomaly Registers: A EUROmediCAT Study


pubblicazioni ars 2015Autori: de Jonge L, Garne E, Gini R, Jordan SE, Klungsoyr K, Loane M, Neville AJ, Pierini A, Puccini A, Thayer DS, Tucker D, Vinkel Hansen A, Bakker MK.
Rivista:  Drug Saf. 2015 Nov;38(11):1083-93.

INTRODUCTION: Research on associations between medication use during pregnancy and congenital anomalies is significative for assessing the safe use of a medicine in pregnancy. Congenital anomaly (CA) registries do not have optimal information on medicine exposure, in contrast to prescription databases. Linkage of prescription databases to the CA registries is a potentially effective method of obtaining accurate information on medicine use in pregnancies and the risk of congenital anomalies.

METHODS: We linked data from primary care and prescription databases to five European Surveillance of Congenital Anomalies (EUROCAT) CA registries. The linkage was evaluated by looking at linkage rate, characteristics of linked and non-linked cases, first trimester exposure rates for six groups of medicines according to the prescription data and information on medication use registered in the CA databases, and agreement of exposure.

Leggi l'abstract completo