Drug interaction between non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and warfarin: a cross-sectional study.

OBJECTIVE

This study aimed to investigate the frequency, and municipal and individual demographic factors, such as sex and age, associated with potential drug-drug interaction (PDDI) between warfarin and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) prescribed by dentists in the state of Minas Gerais (MG), Southeast Brazil. MATERIALS AND

METHODS

A secondary data analysis of a cross-sectional study was conducted using data from the Integrated Pharmaceutical Care Management System (Sigaf) in MG, Brazil, from January to December 2021. IBM SPSS, version 26.0, and Hierarchical Linear and Nonlinear Modelling, version 7.0, were used for data analysis. Poisson Regression was used to estimate the prevalence ratio of potential drug interactions between individual variables.

RESULTS

Data were collected and analyzed from individuals residing in 678 out of 853 municipalities in MG (79.5%). In 2021, 14,474 individuals received warfarin and, among those, 122 received a dental prescription for NSAID. The PDDI occurred in 60 patients. In the multivariate Poisson regression model, increasing age was significantly associated with a lower prevalence of PDDI (p < 0.001).

CONCLUSIONS

The frequency of PDDI among warfarin users was low in 2021. However, among those who received warfarin and dental prescriptions for NSAIDs, the occurrence of PDDI was significant. Furthermore, patient age was found to be an influential factor in PDDI. CLINICAL RELEVANCE: These findings guide dental prescribers in managing drug interactions by either avoiding the combination or monitoring for early detection when its administration is necessary, impacting the patient’s oral and general health quality.