The unlicensed and off label use of drugs in children

This work explores how children everyday are being treated with unlicensed and off label medicines and therefore without the assurances of safety, efficacy and quality which the drug licensing process brings and that adult patients generally enjoy. Ninety percent of babies in neonatal intensive care were found to receive at least one unlicensed or off label drug. Unlicensed and off label drug use was found to be widespread in paediatric wards in five European countries. Although unlicensed use was not a major issue, more than one in ten prescription items for children treated by their General Practitioner in the community were off label.EThOS - Electronic Theses Online ServiceGBUnited Kingdo