Medication Misuse in Children and Adolescents

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Overview

The misuse of prescription and OTC medications in children and teens is a critical area in which community healthcare providers, and pharmacists in particular, can have a great impact. Medications can be misused unintentionally (or even maliciously) by parents and other caregivers, or abused by children and teens themselves. This issue provides a clear overview of the common causes of medication misuse and the potentially harmful consequences.

The ways in which a child’s changing physiology and anatomy can dramatically affect the distribution and clearance of medications, and thus impact dosing, is described. The most common dosing errors parents make, the OTC medications that are potentially dangerous for children, and the medications most likely to be abused by teens are discussed in detail. Medications that are intentionally used to sedate or calm children are also reviewed. Whether misuse is unintentional, intentional, or malicious, the key educational strategies detailed in this issue will enable healthcare providers to improve the safety of medication use in children and teens.

Publication Date: Dec-1-10
Expiration Date: Dec-1-13
CE Credit: 1.5 (.15 CEU)
Type of activity: Knowledge-based

This program was developed by The Rx Consultant and published by Continuing Education Network, Inc. The Rx Consultant accepts no advertising or financial support from the pharmaceutical industry and is funded solely by the purchase of programs. The Rx Consultant is dedicated to providing unbiased, balanced information to health care practitioners.

Programs developed by The Rx Consultant are written by health care providers with expertise in the topic area, peer-reviewed, extensively edited, and fact-checked. This development process was created to insure that every program presents information that is current, accurate, relevant to "real world" health care providers, and written in an easy reading, "plain English" style.

Authors

Roger S. Klotz, RPh, BCNSP, FASCP, FACA, FCPhA, Assistant Professor of Pharmacy Practice and Administration, Western University of Health Sciences College of Pharmacy, Pomona, CA; Allison Jun, PharmD, Clinical Pharmacy Manager, NICU Pharmacist, Children's Hospital of Orange County, CA; Christine Bang, PharmD, Children's Hospital of Orange County, CA; Helen Le, PharmD, Clinical Pharmacy Resident, Children's Hospital of Orange County, CA; and Sam Shimomura, PharmD, FASHP, CGP, Associate Dean, Professor of Pharmacy Practice and Administration, Western University of Health Sciences College of Pharmacy, Pomona, CA. The authors would like to acknowledge Sandip Patel, PharmD Candidate 2011, for his contribution to this issue. Guest Editor: Sarah Scarpace Lucas, PharmD, BCPS, Pediatric Clinical Pharmacist, UCSF Children's Hospital and Assistant Clinical Professor, UCSF School of Pharmacy.

Disclosure Statement

The authors report no financial or personal relationship with any commercial interest producing, marketing, reselling, or distributing a product or service that appears in this issue.

Editorial and Review Board

Editor and CE Administrator Terry M. Baker, PharmD Associate Editor and CE Coordinator Tracy Farnen, PharmD Associate Editors James Chan, PharmD, PhD Pharmacy Quality and Outcomes Coordinator Kaiser Permanente Oakland, CA Associate Clinical Professor School of Pharmacy University of California San Francisco San Francisco, CA Ron Finley, RPh Lecturer Department of Clinical Pharmacy University of California San Francisco San Francisco, CA Associate Member of the UCSF Memory and Aging Center Alzheimer's Research Center Consultant Pharmacist to the Institute on Aging-On Lok Senior Health Institute on Aging Alzheimer's Day Care Center Angie S. Graham, PharmD Drug Information Coordinator Stanford Hospital and Clinics Stanford University Medical Center Stanford, CA Julio R. Lopez, PharmD, FCSHP Chief of Pharmacy Service VA Northern California Health Care System Adjunct Clinical Professor College of Pharmacy Touro University Vallejo, CA Assistant Clinical Professor School of Pharmacy University of California, San Francisco San Francisco, CA

Adjunct Professor Thomas J. Long School of Pharmacy University of the Pacific Stockton, CA Visiting Associate Professor and Lecturer Nursing School Samuel Merritt University Oakland, CA Pamela Mausner, MD Joshua J. Neumiller, PharmD, CDE, CGP, FASCP Assistant Professor Department of Pharmacotherapy College of Pharmacy Washington State University And Elder Services of Spokane Spokane, WA Candy Tsourounis, PharmD Professor of Clinical Pharmacy Medication Outcomes Center Department of Clinical Pharmacy School of Pharmacy University of California, San Francisco San Francisco, CA Senior Editorial Advisor Gerard Hatheway, PharmD, PhD Editorial Advisors Jocelyn Chan, PharmD Belinda M. Danielson, RPh Christopher M. DeSoto, PharmD Cynthia Chan Huang, PharmD, MBA Fred Plageman, PharmD Editorial Advisor and Clinical Practice Consultant for Nurse Practitioners Emily K. Meuleman, RN, C, MS

Accreditation Statements

The Rx Consultant is a publication of Continuing Education Network, Inc.

About the Rx Consultant

The Rx Consultant is a monthly publication dedicated to providing health care professionals with the information they need to educate patients about drugs and manage drug therapy. The reader is responsible for confirming the information presented here and interpreting it in relation to each patient's specific situation before utilizing the information.

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Target Audience

This accredited program is targeted to pharmacists and nurses.

Exam and Credit Statement Procedures

Upon successful completion of this program and the post test (70%), 1.5 hours of continuing education credit will be awarded. To receive credit and your exam score, please complete the exam questions and program evaluation.

Educational Goals and Objectives

At the conclusion of this program, participants will be able to:

1. Describe the physiological differences in children that can affect drug disposition.
2. Identify sources of dosing confusion for parents that may lead to unintentional misuse of OTC medications.
3. Describe the prevalence of intentional medication misuse among adolescents. List 2 drug classes caregivers have maliciously misused in children.