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Comorbidities and Associated Treatment Charges in Patients with Anxiety Disorders
Author(s) -
McLaughlin Trent,
Geissler Erika C.,
Wan George J.
Publication year - 2003
Publication title -
pharmacotherapy: the journal of human pharmacology and drug therapy
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.227
H-Index - 109
eISSN - 1875-9114
pISSN - 0277-0008
DOI - 10.1592/phco.23.12.1251.32700
Subject(s) - anxiety , comorbidity , medicine , medical prescription , panic disorder , psychiatry , generalized anxiety disorder , anxiety disorder , anxiolytic , depression (economics) , agoraphobia , alprazolam , economics , pharmacology , macroeconomics
Objective. To describe comorbidities and treatment charges in patients receiving initial anxiolytic therapy for anxiety disorders. Design. Retrospective data analysis. Patients. Six thousand six hundred forty‐seven patients with anxiety disorders. Measurements and Main Results. Analysis was conducted using medical and pharmacy data for patients in 26 United States health plans from the PharMetrics Integrated Outcomes database. Data were collected for 12 months before and after the first anxiolytic prescription date (index date) during the study period (January 1, 1998‐December 31, 2000). The sample comprised patients with a diagnosis of anxiety disorder whose original anxiolytic prescription had been refilled within 120 days. International Classification of Diseases, 9th revision, Clinical Modification (ICD‐9‐CM) codes and medical and prescription data identified the existence of comorbidities, and medical and prescription charges. The most common diagnoses of anxiety disorder were anxiety not otherwise specified (67%), panic disorder (14%), and generalized anxiety disorder (13%). The most commonly prescribed anxiolytics were benzodiazepines, such as alprazolam (43%) and lorazepam (27%). Hypertension was the most common nonpsychiatric comorbidity (22%) and depression the most common psychiatric comorbidity (37%). Other comorbidities observed were lipid disorders (17%), chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (9%), and asthma (7%). Total treatment charges 12 months before and after initial anxiety diagnosis and anxiolytic prescription were $6279 and $9270, respectively (p<0.0001). Conclusion. Chronic conditions are commonly associated with anxiety disorders. Recognizing these psychiatric and nonpsychiatric comorbidities is important when treating patients with these disorders. Treatment charges are significantly higher when a patient is diagnosed with an anxiety disorder, highlighting the impact of anxiety on the total cost of treatment for these patients.