Overprescribing proton pump inhibitors

doi:10.1136/bmj.39406.449456.BE

BMJ 2008;336:2-3 (5 January), doi:10.1136/bmj.39406.449456.BE

Editorials

Overprescribing proton pump inhibitors

Is expensive and not evidence based

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.

Proton pump inhibitors are one of the most frequently prescribedclasses of drug in the world because they combine a high levelof efficacy with low toxicity. In 2006, expenditure on thesedrugs was £425m ( ${euro}$ 595m; $872m) in England¹ and £7bnglobally.² Yet studies consistently show that proton pump inhibitorsare being overprescribed worldwide in both primary and secondarycare.³⁴⁵⁶⁷⁸⁹ Between 25% and 70% of patients taking these drugshave no appropriate indication. This means that, at the veryleast, £100m from the National Health Service (NHS) budgetand almost £2bn worldwide is being spent unnecessarilyon proton pump inhibitors each year.

The first generic proton pump inhibitor (omeprazole) was introducedin 2002 and now comprises more than four fifths of all prescriptionsfor proton pump inhibitors in the United Kingdom. In the fiveyears since the introduction of omeprazole, precriptions forproton pump inhibitors have doubled, although the . . . [Full text of this article]

Ian Forgacs, consultant physician, Aathavan Loganayagam, specialist registrar

¹ Department of Gastroenterology, King’s College Hospital, London SE5 9RS

ian.forgacs@kcl.ac.uk

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An old problem: A Breck McKay and Daryl Wall
BMJ 2008 336: 109. [Extract] [Full Text] [PDF]

Time for a hospital antacid policy on Clostridium difficile: Jecko Thachil
BMJ 2008 336: 109. [Extract] [Full Text] [PDF]

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McKay, A B., Wall, D. (2008). An old problem. BMJ 336: 109-109 [Full text]
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