Pharmacovigilance Research in India: A Five-Year Literature Review

Abstract

Pharmacovigilance in India is developing rapidly since last decade. Academic healthcare professionals have been conducting research in Pharmacovigilance as a routine academic activity. There is a need for advanced Pharmacovigilance research to understand and effectively manage the burden of drug induced illnesses in Indian population. This review is aimed at highlighting Pharmacovigilance research published by Indian Pharmacologists since last five years. The literature published by Pharmacologists was searched in PubMed and extracted information from 35 articles were categorized and described based on affected organ system by adverse drug reactions (ADRs), drug classes involved, population studied, medication errors, and Pharmacovigilance system aspects. Majority of the studies published included patients from hospital settings predominantly from tertiary care centres. Nearly all studies were carried out in a single centre and were self-funded. There is scope for applying established pharmacovigilance methods, multicentre studies,  research in community settings & public health programmes; expand the research activities to monitor drug induced adverse birth outcomes, adverse events following immunisation, safety monitoring of blood & blood products and medical devices to achieve the ultimate goal of  ensuring Patient Safety.