Inhaled Medication Errors During Hospitalization or on Hospital Discharge in Patients Living With Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease: A Literature Review

Inhaled medications, including beta-agonists, muscarinic antagonists, and corticosteroids, are the backbone of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) treatment, and pharmacotherapy plans are frequently optimized during and following hospitalization. Clinical practice guidelines acknowledge that patients living with COPD may experience medication errors from inadequate inhaler technique or device faults, but inhaled medication errors within COPD pharmacotherapy plans remain unreported. This literature review aimed to collect and present studies describing medication errors occurring with inhaled medications in patients living with COPD during and following hospitalization. The databases searched included Ovid MEDLINE, Embase, and International Pharmaceutical Abstracts. One hundred forty-five unique studies were collected, and 10 studies were included. The rate of inhaled medication errors reported across the 10 studies ranged between 2.5% and 66% of patients living with COPD and who were hospitalized or discharged. The incidence and types of medication errors reported across the studies varied significantly. Standardization in categorizing and reporting inhaled medication errors is necessary for future studies to determine the true incidence of inhaled medication errors occurring in patients living with COPD who are hospitalized or discharged.