What Do These Risk Ratings Mean?
We use the following iGuard Risk Ratings to communicate the risk of
developing serious side effects, listed below in order from lowest to
highest risk.
NOTE: These ratings communicate risk for developing serious side
effects. They DO NOT take into account potential benefits of treatment
or the risk of NOT being treated.
GREEN
|
Low Risk
Suitable for Widespread Use
These drugs have been widely used for a long period of
time – which means that their safety profile is
well known – and they are associated with a low
risk of serious side effects.
|
BLUE
|
General Risk
Use under Normal Care of a Doctor
These drugs have been widely used for a long period of
time – which means that their safety profile is
well known – and are associated with a low risk of
serious side effects when used according to their
directions under the ongoing supervision of a doctor.
|
YELLOW
|
Guarded
Be on the Lookout for Safety Events
Most new drugs fall into this category. They have been
shown to have a low risk of serious side effects under
tightly controlled conditions of a clinical trial, but
have not been used for long enough or widely enough to
really understand their risks.
|
ORANGE
|
Elevated Risk
Create a personal risk reduction plan with your doctor.
These are drugs that require a special discussion
between you and your doctor about ways that together,
you can minimize your drug risk. Such a plan could
simply involve education about signs and symptoms to
look out for, or could involve regular check-ups and
monitoring.
|
RED
|
High Risk
Requires careful consideration of risk versus benefit.
These are drugs that are associated with a high risk
with serious side effects, and require a special
discussion between you and your doctor to discuss risk
versus benefit.
|
GREY
|
On Hold - Risk Rating under review
|
Your age, sex, race, interactions with other medications and conditions
can all affect the safety of your drugs. To get personalized alerts and
risk ratings, you will need to
register and create a profile
.