Assessment of Jordanian Pharmacists' Knowledge and Awareness of Liraglutide Injection and their Practice in Counseling Obesity Patients

Abstract

Background: The purpose of this study was to examine how pharmacists in Jordan perceive and make use of antidiabetic drugs, particularly Glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists (e.g., Saxenda®), for body weight loss. Method: A reliability-validated online survey was created and sent out to the pharmacist's community in Jordan to fill out and get knowledge about the use of Liraglutide injection. Social media was used to extend the survey to facilitate contact among pharmacists from multiple parts of the community. Results: A total of 395 pharmacists were involved in the study, with 70.9% being from the central area of Jordan. A considerable number of the participants (52.4%) had bachelor's degrees and were mostly female. Their average age was 29 ± 7.44 years. Our results showed that many pharmacists dispense 3 mg Liraglutide injection for weight loss and 93% of pharmacists saw a real improvement in the weight loss of patients using the drug. However, our study revealed that many pharmacists (62.3%) were agreed to dispense the drug over-the-counter without a medical prescription and unaware of the risks and side effects of injecting Liraglutide including vitamin D deficiency (21%), hypoglycemia (16%), fatigue (10%), pancreatitis (7%), and hyperthyroidism (5%). Furthermore, the study showed the importance of pharmacists' awareness in preventing and controlling the side effects of Liraglutide injection.