A Questionnaire-based Survey on the Physician\'s Perception on The Efficacy and Safety of IV Ibuprofen in Fever Management
Year: 2024
Type: article
Study design: Observational Study
Abstract: INTRODUCTION: Fever is among the most common reasons for admission to the emergency department. Ibuprofen has been recently approved for the management of fever in India, and there is a paucity of clinical experience on the safety and efficacy of ibuprofen IV in the management of fever in India. OBJECTIVE: The objective of this survey was to understand the physician's perceptions on the efficacy, safety, and user satisfaction when using ibuprofen IV for the management of fever. MATERIAL AND METHODS: This was a cross-sectional survey of physicians across India. A structured, self-reported survey questionnaire was developed. The survey responses were captured by providing multiple choices for the respective questions. RESULTS: For this survey, a total of 69 users were contacted, out of whom 52 agreed to participate and completed the study. In this survey, 98.08% of physicians recommended Ibuprofen IV for its antipyretic effect, and 34% preferred to use Ibuprofen IV for the management of fever of >101(o)F. 32% of physicians preferred to use Ibuprofen IV for the management of bacterial fever, 30% for fever of unknown cause, 29% for any type of viral fever, and 15% preferred for the management of malarial fever. Regarding the dose and frequency of Ibuprofen IV, 86.54% of physicians preferred to use the dose of 400mg 8 hourly for the treatment of short-term symptomatic fever. The perceived time for controlling the fever post-administration of Ibuprofen IV was 20 to 30 minutes reported by 34.62% of physicians, 15 to 20 minutes reported by 32.69%, and <30 minutes reported by 17.31% of physicians as the average time taken in controlling the high fever. On a 0-10 scale, the perceived respondent's antipyretic effect was recorded (1= less effective and 10= highly effective). 82% of physicians reported a score of 8 to 10. Regarding safety, 88.46% of physicians found the ibuprofen IV as safe when managing the fever. User satisfaction: When user satisfaction was recorded (1=low satisfaction and 10=high satisfaction), 32.69% of physicians reported a score of 8, and 26.92% reported a score of 9 and 10. The main reason for satisfaction was “ready-to-use formulation’ which was reported by 37% of physicians, and the other reason was the “prevention of the risk of handling’, reported by 26% of physicians. 92.31% of physicians found an advantage of Ibuprofen IV over paracetamol. The most suitable advantage was the “rapid action’ of ibuprofen IV, reported by 45% of physicians. CONCLUSION: The survey results showed that most of the physicians preferred to use ibuprofen IV for the management of various types of fever at a dose of 400mg given 8hrly. Rapid action was the most common advantage of Ibuprofen IV over paracetamol. Physician's found ibuprofen IV safe with good satisfaction when using it for the management of fever.
Authors: Vaishali Gupte, Saptarshi Ghosh, Shrikant Pawar
Institutions: Medical College and Hospital, Kolkata, Cipla (India)
Language: English
Field: Medicine
Domain: Health Sciences
Open Access status: diamond
OpenAlex ID: W4408189792