(image: Yonhap)
SEOUL, Mar. 20 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korea saw reports of medication side effects gain about 2 percent in 2018, although their rate of growth slowed sharply from the prior year, data showed Wednesday.
Local health authorities handled 257,438 cases of side effects from taking medicine last year, up 1.9 percent from the previous year, according to the data from the Korea Institute of Drug Safety & Risk Management.
The on-year growth rate was much reduced from a 10.3 percent increase in 2017 and a 15.6 percent surge in 2016.
Regional drug safety centers reported the largest number of cases, at 171,748, followed by drug companies and importers with 68,522 cases.
By drug, aspirin, phenacetin and caffeine had the largest reports of side effects with 36,321 cases (14.1 percent), followed by antineoplastics with 27,534 (10.7 percent).
By symptom, nausea was the most common at 41,924 cases (16.3 percent), trailed by itchiness with 24,945 (9.7 percent).
(Yonhap)
