Some Drugs Increase Senior Fractures, PBM
Posted on: Wednesday, 18 October 2006, 15:00 CDT
Some brand drugs increase seniors' fracture risk by 71 percent, says a study by U.S. pharmacy benefits manager Prescription Solutions.
The firm said it did two studies showing that seniors taking drugs like the anti-depressant treatment amitriptyline -- often prescribed off-label in elderly patients for insomnia, chronic and neuropathic pain, and fibromyalgia -- were 71 percent more likely to sustain a fracture as those not taking the drug.
Based on these data, the company said doctors might want to take a closer look at cheaper generic alternatives.
For the elderly, falls are an especially serious health hazard. Our findings in these two studies clearly indicated that to modify risk factors for falls that can lead to fractures, medications for the elderly population need to be more appropriately prescribed and managed, said Edmund Pezalla, vice president and medical director for Prescription Solutions.
As a result of these studies, we can help educate both physicians and patients about alternatives to drugs that may increase the risk of falls and fractures and about precautions to take to minimize these accidents from happening.
The study of amitriptyline used healthcare claims data from a Medicare managed care plan, which included 5,515 matched pairs of amitriptyline-treated patients and a control group not on the drug, at a mean age of 76.5 years.
Another study focused on a class of drugs called benzodiazepines -- often used to treat insomnia -- which showed those drugs increased the risk of falls and fractures by at least 50 percent.
This information is important because a particular non-benzodiazepine, zolpidem -- marketed as Ambien -- may gain preferential use since benzodiazepines are excluded from Medicare Part D coverage in 2006, Pezalla noted. Additionally, zolpidem is expected to be available as a generic this year, which could encourage physicians to prescribe it."
Source: United Press International
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