ix Objectives: To quantify polypharmacy and assess the socio-economic predictors of medication use and expenditure in diabetics. Methods: This study analyzed adult diabetes patients using a nationally representative sample in Medical Expenditure Panel Survey in 2006. Top ten most highly utilized drug classes were identified. Descriptive statistics were used to portray the patients’ medication utilization and spending. Generalized linear models were conducted to assess the socio-economic variants in drug use and spending. Results: On average, a diabetes patient had 45 prescriptions in 2006, for total annual spending of $3,161. A diabetes patient used drugs from 3.43 classes within top ten drug classes. Races and insurance coverage are associated with drug use and spending, holding other factors constant. Conclusion: Diabetes patients use multiple classes of drugs. Insurance coverage and races are related with drug spending and utilization. More research is needed to evaluate the potential risks of drug-drug interactions due to polypharmacy.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:vcu.edu/oai:scholarscompass.vcu.edu:etd-3531 |
| Date | 25 July 2011 |
| Creators | Tao, Jing |
| Publisher | VCU Scholars Compass |
| Source Sets | Virginia Commonwealth University |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | text |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Source | Theses and Dissertations |
| Rights | © The Author |
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