BACKGROUND: Glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1 RAs) are widely accepted for managing Type 2 diabetes mellitus. However, numerous drug-related problems (DRPs) have recently been reported about GLP-1 RAs.
OBJECTIVES: The present descriptive study aimed to compile and report the DRPs of various GLP-1 RAs.
METHODS: The DRPs reported for all the GLP-1 RAs, including exenatide, lixisenatide, liraglutide, dulaglutide, semaglutide, and tirzepatide, were extracted from the category of injury, poisoning, and procedural complications of VigiAccess. The Pharmaceutical Care Network Europe Association (PCNE) classification for drug-related problems (version 9.1) was used to categorize the DRPs into patient-related, healthcare practice-related, and patient- or healthcare practice- related.
RESULTS: Overall, 315952 potential side effects (PSEs) were reported regarding GLP-1 RAs in VigiAccess under injury, poisoning, and procedural complications. Out of 315952 PSE reports, 83210 were DRPs of GLP-1 RAs. Most of them belong to Dulaglutide (23861; 28.68%), followed by tirzepatide (23274; 27.97%), exenatide (18449; 22.17%), semaglutide (11790; 14.97%), and liraglutide (5767; 6.93%). Among the patient-related DRPs, incorrect dose administered (17797; 42.42%), and most of the reports documented for tirzepatide (9993; 23.82%), dulaglutide (4581; 10.92%), and exenatide (2557; 6.10%); however, semaglutide (414; 0.99%), and liraglutide (249; 0.59%), have minor reports documented. Off-label use (13600), most of which were from tirzepatide (4945; 17.59%), followed by semaglutide (4176; 14.85%), liraglutide (1853; 6.59%), exenatide (1530; 5.44%), and dulaglutide (1087; 3.87%).
CONCLUSION: Qualified healthcare practitioners must educate the patients administering the GLP- 1 RAs to minimize preventable DRPs. Also, careful and frequent monitoring of GLP-1 RAs improves therapeutic outcomes by ruling out DRPs. Healthcare practitioners should comply with approved therapeutic guidelines to enhance the quality of GLP-1 RAs treatment.
