Validation of self‐reported medication use applying untargeted mass spectrometry‐based metabolomics techniques in the Rhineland study

British Journal of Clinical Pharmacology, vol. 88, pp. 2380–2395

Abstract

AIMS: To assess the validity of self-reported continuous medication use with drug metabolites measured in plasma by using untargeted mass spectrometric techniques. METHODS: In a population-based cohort in Bonn, Germany, we compared interview-based, self-reported medication intake with drug-specific metabolites measured in plasma (based on participants who completed their study visits between March 2016 and February 2020). Analyses were done stratified by sex and age (<65 years vs ≥65 years). Cohen's kappa (κ) statistics with 95% confidence intervals (CI) were calculated. RESULTS: A total of 13 drugs used to treat hypertension, gout, diabetes, epilepsy and depression were analysed in a sample of 4386 individuals (mean age 55 years, 56.1% women). Eleven drugs showed almost perfect agreement (κ > 0.8), whereas sitagliptin and hydrochlorothiazide showed substantial (κ = 0.8, 95% CI 0.71-0.90) and moderate agreement (κ = 0.61, 95% CI 0.56-0.66), respectively. Frequency of use allowed sex- and age-stratified analyses for eight and nine drugs, respectively. For five drugs, concordance tended to be higher for women than for men. For most drugs, concordance was higher among individuals aged ≥65 years than among individuals aged <65 years, but these age-related differences were not statistically significant. CONCLUSION: High concordance rates between self-reported drug use and metabolites measured in plasma suggest that self-reported drug use is reliable and accurate for assessing drug use.

Authors 4

1. Nersi Alaeddin

   German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases

   Affiliation as printed

   Population Health Sciences German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE) Bonn Germany

   Population Health Sciences, German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE), Bonn, Germany

2. Julia Stingl Aachen Institute of Clinical Pharmacology

   Universitätsklinikum Aachen · RWTH Aachen University

   Affiliation as printed

   Institute of Clinical Pharmacology University Hospital of RWTH Aachen Aachen Germany

   Institute of Clinical Pharmacology, University Hospital of RWTH Aachen, Aachen, Germany

3. Monique M.B. Breteler

   University of Bonn · German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases · Institut für Medizinische Biometrie, Informatik und Epidemiologie

   Affiliation as printed

   Institute for Medical Biometry, Informatics and Epidemiology (IMBIE), Faculty of Medicine University of Bonn Germany

   Population Health Sciences German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE) Bonn Germany

   Institute for Medical Biometry, Informatics and Epidemiology (IMBIE), Faculty of Medicine, University of Bonn, Germany

   Population Health Sciences, German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE), Bonn, Germany

4. Folgerdiena M. de Vries corresponding

   German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases

   Affiliation as printed

   Population Health Sciences German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE) Bonn Germany

   Population Health Sciences, German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE), Bonn, Germany