Abstract

Background: Considering the economic burden of the skin disease treatment and because of its high disease preva- lence, it is important to study the drug prescribing patterns of skin diseases. The data pertaining to drug usage patterns of topical corticosteroids in skin conditions are particularly lacking.
Objective: To study the demographic details and drug prescription pattern in patients with skin diseases who were on topical corticosteroids.
Materials and Methods: It was a prospective cross-sectional study conducted in the Dermatology Department, Azeezia Institute of Medical Sciences and Research, Meeyannoor, Kollam, Kerala, India, for 6 months. The patients with skin diseases who were on topical corticosteroids were included. The data were collected prospectively by direct observation in a specially designed pro forma containing relevant detail such as demographic, disease, and drug data. The data were analyzed as counts and percentages. Result: The patients were of age < 20 years (33%) and 21–40 years (30%), with female subjects (62%) being the majority; patients from rural area (62%) were commonly affected. The most common skin conditions encountered were dermatitis (47%) and psoriasis (14%). The most common topical corticosteroid prescribed was clobetasol propionate (60%). Many of the topical corticosteroids were prescribed in fixed dose combination (42%). Majority of the topical corticosteroids prescribed were of very potent (73%) and potent (14%). Average drug per prescription was 3.6. In prescriptions, 57% were specified using generic names. None of them were specified with either strength or quantity. Only 21% were specified with area of application, 25% with route of administration, and 23% with frequency of administration. Conclusion: There is a need to put more emphasis on rational and complete prescribing of drugs for skin diseases.