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The economic burden of opioid prescription by dentists: A 12‐month survey of consumer expenditure in Brazil
Author(s) -
Nogueira Tulio Eduardo,
Lino Patrícia Azevedo,
Martins Maria Auxiliadora Parreiras,
Silva Maria Elisa Souza,
Leles Claudio Rodrigues,
Abreu Mauro Henrique Nogueira Guimarães
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
journal of public health dentistry
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.64
H-Index - 63
eISSN - 1752-7325
pISSN - 0022-4006
DOI - 10.1111/jphd.12231
Subject(s) - medical prescription , medicine , codeine , pharmacy , purchasing power parity , prescription costs , family medicine , environmental health , emergency medicine , business , finance , anesthesia , prescription drug , morphine , pharmacology , exchange rate
Objectives To describe consumer expenditure on opioids prescribed by dentists in Brazil during a 12‐month period. Methods We surveyed individual dispensed prescriptions of opioids in private pharmacies from October 2012 to September 2013. A descriptive analysis of costs included a calculation of the overall and mean maximum price to consumers. Monetary costs were converted from local currency units (Brazilian Real – BRL) to international dollars using purchasing power parity (PPP) exchanging rates. Results 129,708 prescriptions were retrieved from the database. The overall expenditure on opioids was R$4,316,383.46 BRL or $2,721,315.82 (PPP). The mean cost of an individual prescription was R$33.27 BRL ($20.98 PPP), ranging from 14.19 to 3,255.60 BRL. Codeine was frequently prescribed (87.2 percent). Conclusions The expenditure on opioids is a significant cost to Brazilian patients, especially given that the Brazilian Public Health System should dispense these drugs free of charge. Codeine was the most prescribed opioid.