PHARMACOEPIDEMIOLOGY AND PHARMACOECONOMICS

Definition and scope:

• Origin and evaluation of pharmacoepidemiology
• Need for pharmacoepidemiology
• Aims and applications.

Measurement of outcomes in pharmacoepidemiology

• Outcome measure and drug use measures, 
• Prevalence, 
• Incidence and incidence rate. 
• Monetary units, 
• Number of prescriptions,
• Units of drugs dispensed, 
• Defined daily doses and prescribed daily doses,
• Medication adherence measurement    

Concept of risk in pharmacoepidemiology                                                                          

• Measurement of risk,
• Attributable risk and relative risk
• Time-risk relationship and odds ratio

Pharmacoepidemiological methods:

         Includes theoretical aspects of various methods and practical study of various methods with the help of case studies for individual methods : 

• Drug utilization review, 
• case reports, 
• case series, 
• surveys of drug use,
•  cross  sectional studies, 
• cohort studies, 
• case control studies, 
• case cohort studies, 
• meta  analysis studies, 
• spontaneous reporting, 
• prescription event monitoring and record linkage system.

 Sources of data for pharmacoepidemiological studies  

• Ad Hoc data sources  
• Automated data systems.       

Selected special applications of pharmacoepidemiology   

• Studies of vaccine safety, 
• Hospital pharmacoepidemiology,  
• Pharmacoepidemiology and risk management, 
• Drug induced birth defects. 

  2 ) Phrmacoeconomics:

         Definition, history, needs of pharmacoeconomic evaluations   

         Role in formulary management decisions     

• Pharmacoeconomic evaluation      

       Outcome assessment and types of evaluation  Includes theoretical aspects of various methods and practical study of various methods with the help of case studies for individual methods:
       - Cost  minimization, 
       - Cost- benefit, 
       - Cost  effectiveness, 
       - Cost utility 

3 ) Applications of Pharmacoeconomics                 

       Software and case studies