Drug prescription to children living in the Arctic. An investigation from Nuuk, Greenland.

The prescription pattern to children living in an arctic environment (Nuuk, Greenland) is similar to the pattern seen in other countries e.g. Sweden, Norway or the US, but the prescription rate of both anti-infectives and the total number of drugs is 2-3 times larger. This may reflect differences both in socioeconomic factors, in disease patterns and in sickness rate in children living in the Arctic. Inuit children are known to have a disease pattern that partly differs from the one seen elsewhere. Most drugs were prescribed to the youngest children who also received less phenoxymethylpenicillin and more other anti-infectives. 2/3 of all drugs were prescribed during the winter (November to April). A small group of large scale consumers, 116 children or 7% of the children prescribed drugs, were prescribed anti-infective drugs 3 times or more and were prescribed more than 1/5 of all drugs to children in Nuuk in the year surveyed.