Gender Differences among Patients Reporting Medication Allergies

Abstract

Objective:

To determine whether there are gender differences in the frequency of reporting and accuracy of medication allergy information given by adult patients on admission to the hospital.

Setting:

This study was conducted in the acute medical ward of a rural hospital.

Methods:

This was a prospective study of all patients admitted to the ward over a three-month period. Patients who claimed to have an allergy to a target drug (opiates, antibiotics, nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drugs) were interviewed to learn the nature of any reactions.

Results:

Forty-three patients (of 183 evaluable patients) claimed to have one or more medication allergies. Women were more likely than men to claim a medication allergy (p = 0.023) and to have had a probable allergic reaction (p = 0.011). The allergy status of men was more likely to be unevaluable (p < 0.001).

Conclusions:

This study found that women both claim and experience more medication allergies than do men. Given the paucity of research in this area, gender differences in medication allergy claims deserve further study. The reasons for these differences also have not been well studied and require further investigation. Because a layperson may misidentify an adverse drug reaction as being due to an allergy, pharmacists should verify allergy status to ensure the accuracy of the medical record and the appropriateness of drug therapy.