Abstract
Objective:
To evaluate health care resource utilization in patients with schizophrenia who continued newly prescribed antipsychotic medications, compared with those switching to different treatments.
Methods:
Adults with schizophrenia in the California Medicaid (MediCal) database who initiated treatment with index medications in 1998–2001, were classified as having: 1) abandoned antipsychotic medications; 2) switched to another medication; or 3) continued with the index antipsychotic, for up to 6 months after the index date.
Results:
Of 2300 patients meeting eligibility criteria, 1382 (60.1%) continued index medications, 480 (20.9%) switched, and 438 (19.0%) abandoned antipsychotic treatment. Utilization in several resource categories occurred significantly more frequently among patients whose regimens were switched (vs those continuing index medications). These included using psychiatric (24.2% vs 14.5%; P < 0.001) or nonpsychiatric (31.5% vs 24.3%; P < 0.05) emergency services; being admitted to a hospital (10.6% vs 7.4%; P < 0.05); making nonpsychiatric outpatient hospital visits (43.3% vs 36.4%; P < 0.05) or nonpsychiatric physician visits (62.7% vs 56.4%; P < 0.05); and using other outpatient psychiatric (53.3% vs 40.7%; P < 0.001) or nonpsychiatric (82.7% vs 74.6%; P < 0.001) services.
Conclusions:
Switching antipsychotic medications is associated with significantly increased health care resource utilization (vs continuing treatment).
Acknowledgements
This study was supported by Eli Lilly and Company (Indianapolis, IN), which had a role in study design, data acquisition and analysis, and publication of the findings. Assistance in manuscript preparation was provided by Robin D LeWinter, PhD and Stephen W Gutkin of Rete Biomedical Communications Corp. (Wyckoff, NJ), with support from the study sponsor.
Disclosure
Drs Phillips and Ball are employees of and minor shareholders in the study sponsor. Dr Noordsy has served as a consultant or speaker and/or has received research funding from AstraZeneca, Eli Lilly, Janssen, Merck, and Pfizer. Mr Linde-Zwirble has served as a consultant and speaker for Eli Lilly.