Table 2.
Pharmacotherapy characteristics of patients attending the PHC of a midsize city of Minas Gerais, 2012
| Characteristics | Scores MRCI1 | Medicines % (n) |
|---|---|---|
| Section A: Dosage forms (n= 1788) | ||
| Oral (n= 1724) | ||
| Capsules/ Tablets | 1.0 | 95.1 (1701) |
| Gargles/ Mouthwashes/ Gums/ Lozenges/ Liquids/ Powders/ Granules/ Sublingual Spray/Tabs | 2.0 | 1.3 (23) |
| Topical (n= 13) | ||
| Creams/ Gels/ Ointments/ Paints/ Solutions | 2.0 | 0.7 (12) |
| Patches | 2.0 | 0.1 (1) |
| Sprays | 1.0 | - |
| Dressing/ Pastes | 3.0 | - |
| Injections (n= 27) | ||
| Ampoules/ Vials | 4.0 | 1.5 (27) |
| Prefilled | 3.0 | - |
| Nasal (n= 11) | ||
| Spray | 2.0 | 0.6 (11) |
| Drops/ Creams/ Ointments | 3.0 | - |
| Inhalation (n= 9) | ||
| Metered dose inhalers | 4.0 | 0.5 (9) |
| Accuhalesr/ Aerolizers/ Turbuhaler/ Other DPIs/ Oxygen/ Concentrator | 3.0 | - |
| Nebuliser | 5.0 | - |
| Vaginal(n= 3) | ||
| Creams | 2.0 | 0.2 (3) |
| Ear(n= 1) Drops/ creams/ ointments | 3.0 | 0.1 (1) |
| Section B: Dosing Frequency (n = 1784)2 | ||
| Once daily | 1.0 | 61.0 (1088) |
| Twice daily | 2.0 | 9.8 (175) |
| Three times daily | 3.0 | 1.5 (27) |
| Four times daily | 4.0 | 0.5 (9) |
| q 12h | 2.5 | 19.8 (354) |
| q 8h | 3.5 | 4.4 (78) |
| q 6h | 4.5 | 1.1 (19) |
| q 4h | 6.5 | 0.2 (3) |
| prn/ sos | 0.5 | 1.7 (31) |
| Section C: Additional Directions (n = 255)2 | ||
| Relation to food | 1.0 | 60.0 (153) |
| Break or crush tablet / Multiple units at one time | 1.0 | 34.5 (88) |
| Alternating dose | 2.0 | 5.1 (13) |
| Tapering or increasing dose | 2.0 | 0.4 (1) |
1
Suggested by George et al. (2004)
2
Missing information.