Drug utilization research can be defined as ‘an eclectic collection of descriptive and analytical methods for the quantification, the understanding and the evaluation of the processes of prescribing, dispensing and consumption of medicines, and for the testing of interventions to enhance the quality of these processes’.

The discipline may be seen as the bridge between pharmacoepidemiology and health services research. It is also closely connected to clinical pharmacology, with the principal aim of drug utilization research being to facilitate the safe and effective use of medicines in populations.

Research in drug utilization began to develop in the 1960s. Some pioneering studies focused on assessing differences in drug utilization between countries or regions. Other studies focused on factors influencing the prescribing patterns of physicians.

The eclectic nature of drug utilization research requires expertise in a broad range of research methodologies. Part 2 of the book provides guidance on a wide range of quantitative and qualitative methods used in drug utilization research.

The numerous applications of drug utilization research are illustrated in Part 3, which include sections on comparative drug utilization research, drug utilization and health policy, drug utilization in specific populations and therapeutic areas, determinants of drug utilization, adherence and drug utilization research, the role of drug utilization within the field of pharmacoepidemiology and the assessment and improvement of the quality of medicine use.