Abstract

BARBER PEREZ, Patricia; MORERA SALAS, Melvin; APARICIO LLANOS, Amada  and  XIRINACHS SALAZAR, Yanira. Evolution of public consumption and spending on non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (nsaids) during the period 2001 to 2005. Rev. costarric. salud pública [online]. 2007, vol.16, n.31, pp.19-26. ISSN 1409-1429.

This observational, retrospective study analyzed the pharmaceutical consumption and expense of classic NSAIDs (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs) in Costa Rica during the period 2001 to 2005. Its objective was to contribute to knowledge regarding the expense structure as well as the pattern of use and pharmacological consumption of this group of medicines with the purpose of providing better support to the inexorable process of the appearance and foreseeable public financing of new-generation NSAIDs in our country. NSAIDs are a group of medicines associated in a special fashion to the new lifestyles whose level of consumption grows in an uninterrupted fashion and whose participation in pharmaceutical expense is more relevant every day. At present, NSAIDs constitute the fourth most-important group of medicines in public pharmaceutical expense with an increment of 15% in real numbers during the period 2001 to 2004. NSAIDs consumption in Costa Rica during 2005 was 21.02 DHDs (which refers to daily dose per inhabitant) and during the period 2000 through 2005 consumption increased by 48%. Regarding their use in 2005, the active principles conforming this pharmacological group which stand out are indomethacin with 6.36 DHD, sulindac with 6.06 DHD, ibuprophen with 4.36 DHD and tenoxicam with 3.25 DHD. Daily treatment costs (CTD) varied between two cents of a dollar for ibuprophen and 1.49 dollars for tenoxicam.

Keywords : Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory agents (NSAIDs); daily dose per inhabitant (DHD); defined daily dose (DDD); consumption of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory agents.

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