Comparative Study of Paediatric Prescription Drug Utilization between the Spanish and Immigrant Population

Gimeno Feliu, L. A. (Universidad de Zaragoza) ; Armesto,F. J. ; Macipe Costa,R. M. ; Esteban,E. A. ; Magallón Botaya,R. (Universidad de Zaragoza)

Resumen: Background: The immigrant population has increased greatly in Spain in recent years to the point where immigrants made up 12% of the infant population in 2008. There is little information available
on the profile of this group with regard to prescription drug utilization in universal public health care systems such as that operating in Spain. This work studies the overall and specific differences
in prescription drug utilization between the immigrant and Spanish population.
Methods: Use was made of the Aragonese Health Service databases for 2006. The studied population comprises 159,908 children aged 0-14 years, 13.6% of whom are foreign nationals. Different utilization variables were calculated for each group. Prescription-drug consumption is measured in Defined Daily Doses (DDD) and DDD/1000 persons/day/(DID).
Results: A total of 833,223 prescriptions were studied. Utilization is lower for immigrant children
than in Spanish children for both DID (66.27 v. 113.67) and average annual expense (€21.55 v. €41.14). Immigrant children consume fewer prescription drugs than Spanish children in all of the
therapy groups, with the most prescribed (in DID) being: respiratory system, anti-infectives for systemic use, nervous system, sensory organs. Significant differences were observed in relation to
the type of drugs and the geographical background of immigrants.
Conclusion: Prescription drug utilization is much greater in Spanish children than in immigrant children, particularly with reference to bronchodilators (montelukast and terbutaline) and attention-disorder hyperactivity drugs such as methylphenidate. There are important differences regarding drug type and depending on immigrants' geographical backgrounds that suggest there are social, cultural and access factors underlying these disparities.

Idioma: Inglés

Año: 2009

Publicado en: TROPICAL MEDICINE & INTERNATIONAL HEALTH 14 (2009), 71-71
ISSN: 1360-2276

Factor impacto JCR: 2.328 (2009)

Categ. JCR: TROPICAL MEDICINE rank: 5 / 17 = 0.294 (2009) - Q2 - T1
Categ. JCR: PUBLIC, ENVIRONMENTAL & OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH rank: 40 / 121 = 0.331 (2009) - Q2 - T2

Tipo y forma: Article (Published version)

Área (Departamento): Area Medicina (Dpto. Medicina, Psiqu. y Derm.)