Reliability of Wikipedia as a medication information source for pharmacy students

Abstract

Objective: To assess the accuracy, completeness, and referencing of medication information in Wikipedia compared with information found in the manufacturer's package insert. Methods: Wikipedia articles for the 20 most frequently prescribed drugs per published lists of top 200 brand and generic drugs were evaluated. Four drug information residency-trained pharmacists independently assessed the articles for specific categories of information typically found in medication package inserts. Each category was evaluated for presence in the Wikipedia article, accuracy, completeness, and referencing (fully, partially, or none). Package inserts, Micromedex Drugdex Evaluations, Clinical Pharmacology, and Lexi-Comp databases were used to verify accuracy, and completeness was evaluated by comparing article contents to package inserts alone. Results: Of the 20 categories of information assessed, a mean of twelve (range, 8-16) categories were present in each of the 20 Wikipedia articles. Categories most frequently absent were drug interactions and medication use in breastfeeding. No article contained all categories of information. Information on contraindications and precautions, drug absorption, and adverse drug events was most frequently found to be inaccurate; descriptions of off-label indications, contraindications and precautions, drug interactions, adverse drug events, and dosing were most frequently incomplete. Referencing was poor across all articles, with seven of the 20 articles not supported by any references. Conclusion: Wikipedia does not provide consistently accurate, complete, and referenced medication information. Pharmacy faculty should actively recommend against our students' use of Wikipedia for medication information and urge them to consult more credible drug information resources. © 2011 Elsevier Inc.