ABSTRACT
Pharmacoepidemiology is the study of the uses and effects of drugs in well defined populations. The issues which are addressed in pharmacoepidemiology are Drug utilization research/quality of care, Drug effects and Analytic methods. A study was undertaken to study the utilization patterns of herbal drug use in urban Ethiopia. A cross-sectional community-based survey was conducted in Addis Ababa, the capital city of Ethiopia, using a pre-tested semi-structured questionnaire. Ayurpharmacoepidemiology is a new field developed by the synergy of the fields of clinical pharmacology, epidemiology, and Ayurveda. It will use the effects of Ayurvedic medicinal products on large populations to describe and analyze the practices, evaluate the safety and efficacy, and carry out medico economic evaluations. The Uppsala Monitoring Centre has published Guidelines for an Herbal Anatomical, Therapeutic, Chemical classification (ATC) and an Herbal ATC Index. However, these documents are no longer being supplied to external customers. Some herbal remedies have a longstanding use in medicine and their actions are well-defined.
