Circumstances Under Which Children Should be Prescribed Drugs for Off-Label Use

Circumstances Under Which Children Should be Prescribed Drugs for Off-Label Use

The use of off-label medications is a common practice in pediatric patients. The practice is associated with increased risk of harm to the patients because of inadequate evidence-based data on their use. Therefore, this paper examines circumstances that may lead to off-label prescribing to pediatric patients and safety strategies to be considered.

Circumstances

There are circumstances under which children should be prescribed off-label medications. One of them is a situation where the healthcare providers are managing unapproved disorder that does not have approved medications. In such cases, physicians prescribe medications that have proven effective among the adult populations for a similar disorder at a lower dose. The other circumstance is when the healthcare practitioners have in-depth understanding of the pediatric patients’ disease process and the effectiveness of off-label drugs. They prescribe off-label medications to benefit the patients while utilizing their professional judgment to improve the care outcomes in pediatric patients (van der Zanden et al., 2021). For example, physicians prescribe ketamine for pediatric patients admitted to the intensive care unit despite it not being a FDA-approved drug of choice for this population.

Strategies

Healthcare practitioners should consider several strategies to ensure that off-label drugs are safe for children from infancy to adolescence. One of the strategies is by relying on the existing evidence when prescribing the off-label medications. Practitioners should critique the evidence obtained from high-quality studies and use them to inform their prescription decisions when treating pediatric patients. The other strategy is by considering ethics of practice. The decisions to treat pediatrics with off-label drugs should be informed by the principles of ensuring safety, justice, and quality outcomes for the patients (García-López et al., 2020; Hoekstra & Dietrich, 2022).

The other strategy is considering the influence of patient factors such as age on the pharmacological processes of the drugs prescribed to pediatric patients. The pharmacodynamic and pharmacotherapeutic processes in adult differ from that seen in pediatric patients. Therefore, practitioners should make decisions such as lowering the dosage and frequency of off-label medications as compared to adult doses to ensure safety and quality outcomes (Hoon et al., 2019). Some of the off-label drugs that should be prescribed with care for pediatric patients include hydromorphone, ketamine, and dexmedetomidine, which can be fatal is poorly used.

Conclusion

            In conclusion, off-label medications are largely used in pediatric patients. The use is attributable to the lack of adequate data on the efficacy of different treatments for pediatric conditions. Practitioners should consider strategies for ensuring safety in the prescription of off-label medications. In addition, they should make their treatment decisions based on evidence-based data and guidelines.

References

García-López, I., Cuervas-Mons Vendrell, M., Martín Romero, I., de Noriega, I., Benedí González, J., & Martino-Alba, R. (2020). Off-label and unlicensed drugs in pediatric palliative care: A prospective observational study. Journal of Pain and Symptom Management, 60(5), 923–932. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpainsymman.2020.06.014

Hoekstra, P. J., & Dietrich, A. (2022). First do no harm: Use off-label antipsychotic medication in children and adolescents with great caution. European Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, 31(1), 1–3. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00787-022-01950-7

Hoon, D., Taylor, M. T., Kapadia, P., Gerhard, T., Strom, B. L., & Horton, D. B. (2019). Trends in off-label drug use in ambulatory settings: 2006–2015. Pediatrics, 144(4), e20190896. https://doi.org/10.1542/peds.2019-0896

van der Zanden, T. M., Mooij, M. G., Vet, N. J., Neubert, A., Rascher, W., Lagler, F. B., Male, C., Grytli, H., Halvorsen, T., de Hoog, M., & de Wildt, S. N. (2021). Benefit-risk assessment of off-label drug use in children: The bravo framework. Clinical Pharmacology & Therapeutics, 110(4), 952–965. https://doi.org/10.1002/cpt.2336

Circumstances under which children should be prescribed drugs for off-label use: The unapproved use of approved drugs, also called off-label use, with children is quite common. This is because pediatric dosage guidelines are typically unavailable since very few drugs have been specifically researched and tested with children.

When treating children, prescribers often adjust dosages approved for adults to accommodate a child’s weight. However, children are not just “smaller” adults. Adults and children process and respond to drugs differently in their absorption, distribution, metabolism, and excretion. Children even respond differently during stages from infancy to adolescence. This poses potential safety concerns when prescribing drugs to pediatric patients. As an advanced practice nurse, you have to be aware of safety implications of the off-label use of drugs with this patient group.

To prepare:

Review the Bazzano et al. and Mayhew articles in the Learning Resources. Reflect on situations in which children should be prescribed drugs for off-label use.

Think about strategies to make the off-label use and dosage of drugs safer for children from infancy to adolescence. Consider specific off-label drugs that you think require extra care and attention when used in pediatrics.

With these thoughts in mind:

By Day 3 of circumstances under which children should be prescribed drugs for off-label use

Post an explanation of circumstances under which children should be prescribed drugs for off-label use. Then, describe strategies to make the off-label use and dosage of drugs safer for children from infancy to adolescence. Include descriptions and names of off-label drugs that require extra care and attention when used in pediatrics.

By Day 6

Read a selection of your colleagues’ responses and respond to at least two of your colleagues on two different days who provided a different rationale than you did, in one or more of the following ways:

Offer and support an alternative perspective using readings from the classroom or from your own research in the Walden Library.

Validate an idea with your own experience and additional research.

Readings

·        Bazzano, A. T, Mangione-Smith, R., Schonlau, M., Suttorp, M. J., & Brook, R. H. (2009). Off-label prescribing to children in the United States outpatient setting. Academic Pediatrics, 9(2), 81–88.
Retrieved from Walden Library databases.

This study examines the frequency of off-label prescribing to children and explores factors that impact off-label prescribing.

·        Mayhew, M. (2009). Off-label prescribing. The Journal for Nurse Practitioners, 5(2), 122–123.
Retrieved from the Walden Library databases.

This article reviews the prevalence of off-label prescribing, including its benefits and risks. It also explores issues regarding the safety of off-label prescribing and when it is unavoidable.