Author/Editor		Srishanmuganathan, Janakan; Patel, Hitesh; Car, Josip; Majeed, Azeem
Title		National trends in the use and costs of anti-obesity medications in England 1998-2005
Type		članek
Source		Journal of public health
Vol. and No.		Letnik 29, št. 2
Publication year		2007
Volume		str. 199-202
Language		eng
Abstract		Background: To report the trends in the use and costs of anti-obesity medications in England from 1998 to 2005. METHODS: We analysed data on all community anti-obesity drug prescriptions in England collated by the prescription cost analysis system. Results: Between 1998 and 2005, Orlistat prescriptions rose 36-fold from 17,880 to 646,700 and total cost increased by over 35-fold. Sibutramine prescriptions rose from 2001 to 2005 from 53,393 to 227,000, a 4-fold increase. Although prescriptions of Orlistat and Sibutramine have increased substantially since they were first introduced, the rate of growth decreased substantially in recent years until 2005, when a significant increase in the number and cost of prescriptions for orlistat occurred yet again. Conclusion: We found a large increase in the use and costs of anti-obesity prescriptions, consistent with the increased awareness of obesity amongst health care professionals and the public. Despite this large increase, there are still no head-to-head studies at a national level that directly compare all anti-obesity medication in use in the UK.
Descriptors		OBESITY ANTI-OBESITY AGENTS DRUG COSTS PUBLIC HEALTH ENGLAND