The AGNP-TDM group (AGNP: Arbeitsgemeinschaft für Neuropsychopharmakologie und Pharmakopsychiatrie; TDM: Therapeutic Drug Monitoring) published consensus guidelines for the use of TDM of psychtropic drugs in psychiatry (Baumann et al., 2004). The main objective of these guidelines was to offer a tool to psychiatrists and laboratories for optimising pharmacotherapy.

By an analysis of the scientific literature which cited this publication, the use of these guidelines for research purposes was evaluated.

The citations of the paper (Baumann et al., 2004) by Web of Science were analysed for their content, in categorising the domains of research for which this reference appeared to be useful.

Between 2004 and September 2011, this paper was cited 199 times, as reported by Web of Science. The analysis of the citations showed that the following main categories of research were particularly represented:

1. 1) Development of analytical methods for drug analysis;

2. 2) Fundamental research in psychopharmacology;

3. 3) Studies about the drug plasma concentrations - clinical outcome relationship;

4. 4) Usefulness of TDM in clinical practice;

5. 5) Pharmacovigilance, drug safety.

This study shows that Consensus guidelines developed for the daily practice are also of considerable value for research purposes.