Clarifying Adverse Drug Events: A Clinician's Guide to Terminology, Documentation, and Reporting
Publication: Annals of Internal Medicine
Volume 140, Number 10
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Abstract
Adverse drug events cause substantial morbidity and mortality, yet they remain underappreciated and misunderstood. The terminology to describe errors and patient harm associated with medications causes much confusion. This article uses the case study of a patient with multiple adverse drug events to clarify key terms, such as adverse event, adverse drug reaction, adverse drug event, medication error, and side effect. The case discussion illustrates clinical approaches to analyzing the causal connection between a suspect drug and an adverse event. Examples and rationale for meaningful documentation of adverse drug events are provided, along with an outline of the types of events that should be reported to regulatory agencies.
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Published In
Annals of Internal Medicine
Volume 140 • Number 10 • 18 May 2004
Pages: 795 - 801
History
Published online: 18 May 2004
Published in issue: 18 May 2004
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© 2004 American College of Physicians.
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Clarifying Adverse Drug Events: A Clinician's Guide to Terminology, Documentation, and Reporting. Ann Intern Med.2004;140:795-801. [Epub 18 May 2004]. doi:10.7326/0003-4819-140-10-200405180-00009
Clarifying Adverse Drug Events: A Clinician's Guide to Terminology, Documentation, and Reporting. Ann Intern Med.2004;140:795-801. [Epub 18 May 2004]. doi:10.7326/0003-4819-140-10-200405180-00009
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