Improvement of the Drug Allergy Alert for Nonprescription NSAIDs

Abstract

Objective The purpose of the study was to compare revised and current ibuprofen over-the-counter (OTC) allergy alerts for usability, readability, and overall preferences in consumers naive to drug allergies and drug-induced allergy survivors. Methods Label comprehension studies in naive consumers and survivors used standard measures for usability, readability, and preferences to rate new versus current content and format regarding time of onset, onset after prior safe use, syndrome name, progressive nature, symptoms, and use of capital letters. Results The revised allergy alert was statistically superior to the current alert as reported by all participants for overall preference, most new key content elements, and usefulness for first-time users (for each, P <.001). Survivors agreed the new alert applied to their drug allergy experience ( P <.001). Conclusions There is a gap of key information in the current OTC ibuprofen allergy alerts, demonstrating the need for revision of the OTC Drug Facts label.