You are here

Article Text

Article menu
Download PDFPDF
Patient safety and risk management
PS-095 Drug interactions between imatinib and the usual home treatment
  1. A Tristancho1,
  2. M Manzano1,
  3. S Artacho1,
  4. E Alvaro2,
  5. R Cantudo1,
  6. C Haro1,
  7. E Calvo3,
  8. A Robustillo1,
  9. Y Borrego1,
  10. R Jimenez1
  1. 1Hospital Universitario de Valme, Pharmacy, Seville, Spain
  2. 2Hospital Costa Del Sol, Pharmacy, Malaga, Spain
  3. 3Hospital de Valme, Pharmacy, Seville, Spain

Abstract

Background Imatinib has a high likelihood of drug interactions due to hepatic oxidative metabolism.

Purpose To evaluate the incidence and severity of interactions between imatinib and home treatment of oncohaematology patients.

Material and methods Retrospective observational study of oncohaematology patients treated with imatinib between January and March 2014. The following data were collected: age, sex, diagnosis, date of start and end of treatment with Imatinib and concomitant prescribed medicines. Imatinib interactions with other drugs were assessed by the software tool Micromedex 2.0. These were classified as: contraindicated, severe, moderate and mild.

Results 24 patients were included. 58% were men (n = 14) with a mean age of 61 years. The main indication for imatinib was chronic myeloid leukaemia (54%). 164 prescriptions were analysed. The most prescribed therapeutic groups were: analgesics (19%), antidepressants and anxiolytics (16%), antihypertensives (11%) and gastric protectors (10%). 16 interactions between imatinib and concomitant treatment were detected, affecting 50% of patients. 69% were severe interactions and 31% moderate interactions. 6 patients had one severe interaction, 2 had two severe interactions, 1 patient suffered a severe and a moderate interaction and 2 patients each had two moderate interactions. Severe interactions were due to paracetamol (n = 8), acenocoumarol (n = 2) and amiodarone (n = 1). Moderate interactions were for itraconazole (n = 2), tamsulosin (n = 1), ketoconazole (n = 1) and levothyroxine (n = 1). The effect of severe interactions was reviewed and no clinical relevance was detected to date. These patients were selected for special monitoring by the pharmacist.

Conclusion Like other studies on the subject, our study shows that there are numerous interactions between imatinib and other drugs. The interactions detected are severe or moderate. It is important to keep track of patients treated with imatinib who take paracetamol due to the very frequent use of this drug.

Reference

  1. Farm Hosp 2014;38(4):338–363

ReferenceNo conflict of interest.

https://doi.org/10.1136/ejhpharm-2015-000639.418

Statistics from Altmetric.com

    Request Permissions

    If you wish to reuse any or all of this article please use the link below which will take you to the Copyright Clearance Center’s RightsLink service. You will be able to get a quick price and instant permission to reuse the content in many different ways.