Australasian Journal of Dermatology

<jats:title>Abstract</jats:title><jats:sec><jats:title>Background/Obectives</jats:title><jats:p>Oral retinoids are teratogenic, and pregnancy avoidance is an important part of retinoid prescribing. Australia does not have a standardised pregnancy prevention programme for women using oral retinoids, and the contraception strategies for women who use oral retinoids are not well understood.</jats:p><jats:p>The objectives were to determine trends in the use of prescription retinoids among Australian reproductive‐aged women and whether women dispensed oral retinoids used contraception concomitantly.</jats:p></jats:sec><jats:sec><jats:title>Methods</jats:title><jats:p>This was a population‐based study using Australian Pharmaceutical Benefits (PBS) dispensing claims for a random 10% sample of 15‐44‐year‐old Australian women, 2013 ‐ 2021. We described rates and annual trends in dispensing claims for PBS‐listed retinoids and contraceptives. We also estimated concomitant oral retinoid and contraceptive use on the day of each retinoid dispensing and determined if there was a period of contraceptive treatment that overlapped. Estimates were then extrapolated to the national level.</jats:p></jats:sec><jats:sec><jats:title>Results</jats:title><jats:p>There were 1,545,800 retinoid dispensings to reproductive‐aged women; 57.1% were oral retinoids. The rate of retinoid dispensing to reproductive‐aged women increased annually, from 28 dispensings per 1000 population in 2013 to 41 per 1000 in 2021. The rate of oral retinoid dispensing doubled over the study period, from 14 dispensings per 1000 population in 2013 to 28 per 1000 in 2021, while topical retinoid dispensing did not change. Only 25% of oral retinoid dispensings had evidence of concomitant contraceptive use in 2021.</jats:p></jats:sec><jats:sec><jats:title>Conclusions</jats:title><jats:p>Rates of oral retinoid dispensing have doubled among reproductive‐aged women over the past decade. A large percentage of oral retinoid use does not appear to have concomitant contraception use, posing a risk of teratogenic effects in pregnancies.</jats:p></jats:sec>

publication_history

received

accepted

published

National Health and Medical Research Council

Financial Markets Foundation for Children

Isotretinoin: the mothersafe experience 2010 to 2014. A need to revisit education and prescribing practices

Birth Defects Res A Clin Mol Teratol

Terminations of pregnancy associated with isotretinoin use in New Zealand

New Zealand Med J

iPLEDGE must abstain from abstinence

J Clin Aesthet Dermatol

Oral retinoids are teratogenic, and pregnancy avoidance is an important part of retinoid prescribing. Australia does not have a standardised pregnancy prevention programme for women using oral retinoids, and the contraception strategies for women who use oral retinoids are not well understood. The objectives were to determine trends in the use of prescription retinoids among Australian reproductive-aged women and whether women dispensed oral retinoids used contraception concomitantly.
This was a population-based study using Australian Pharmaceutical Benefits (PBS) dispensing claims for a random 10% sample of 15-44-year-old Australian women, 2013 - 2021. We described rates and annual trends in dispensing claims for PBS-listed retinoids and contraceptives. We also estimated concomitant oral retinoid and contraceptive use on the day of each retinoid dispensing and determined if there was a period of contraceptive treatment that overlapped. Estimates were then extrapolated to the national level.
There were 1,545,800 retinoid dispensings to reproductive-aged women; 57.1% were oral retinoids. The rate of retinoid dispensing to reproductive-aged women increased annually, from 28 dispensings per 1000 population in 2013 to 41 per 1000 in 2021. The rate of oral retinoid dispensing doubled over the study period, from 14 dispensings per 1000 population in 2013 to 28 per 1000 in 2021, while topical retinoid dispensing did not change. Only 25% of oral retinoid dispensings had evidence of concomitant contraceptive use in 2021.
Rates of oral retinoid dispensing have doubled among reproductive-aged women over the past decade. A large percentage of oral retinoid use does not appear to have concomitant contraception use, posing a risk of teratogenic effects in pregnancies.

Prescription retinoid and contraception use in women in Australia: A population-based study.

Prescription retinoid and contraception use in women in Australia: A population‐based study

Prescription retinoid and contraception use in women in Australia: A population‐based study

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