Drug Topics - January 2009 - (Page H2) HSE I Clinical THE COST OF HEPARIN CARE Study: More expensive heparin reduces patient costs FRED GEBHART, Contributing Editor H were discharged between January 2004 and March 2007. The retrospective analysis used the 7th American College of Chest Physicians (ACCP) guidelines for VTE prophylaxis. Results were presented at the American Society of Hematology 2008 Annual Meeting. Companion studies using data from the nationwide Premier hospital system found that full compliance with VTE prophylaxis guidelines provides better medical outcomes than does use of partial prophylaxis. Complete prophylaxis also costs less than partial prophylaxis. All three studies were supported by Sanofi-Aventis, which markets LMWH. (Amin has served on the speakers’ bureau for Sanofi-Aventis.) The difference in cost of care could be significant in even a single instituFull compliance with VTE prophylaxis guidelines can provide better medical outcomes. tion, Amin said. VTE is responsible for about 300,000 deaths in the United ospital pharmacists fighting pitalist Program. “In this study with a States annually, he said, which amounts budget battles between unfrac- large database, the overall economic to between 5 and 10 percent of total inhospital mortality. tionated heparin (UFH) and costs were lower with low “We have the technollow molecular weight heparin (LMWH) molecular weight heparin ogy and the pharmacologic have a new ally. University of Califor- than with unfractionated POWER POINTS agents that can prevent nia Irvine Medical School researchers heparin.” VTE,” he told Drug Topics. Length of stay was found that the total cost of care for Appropriate VTE “Pharmacologic treatment patients at risk for venous thrombo- similar for the two forms prophylaxis has not been the works better than meembolism (VTE) is lower using LMWH of heparin, but room and standard of care. chanical devices.” than UFH. LMWH is significantly more board, operating room, The basic problem is and medical supply costs expensive than UHF. Univariate that appropriate VTE pro“The issue that comes up is cost ver- were lower with LMWH. analysis revealed phylaxis has not become sus quality and doing the right thing for Total pharmacy costs were a mean savings part of the standard of patients,” said Alpesh Amin, MD, MBA, lower with UFH. of $2,388 per discharge care in many hospitals. Univariate analysis professor and interim chair of medicine, [with LMWH]. Amin presented data at and executive director of the UCI Hos- showed a mean savings of the ACCP annual meet$2,388 per discharge for LMWH versus UFH. Multivariate analy- ing in 2006 showing that only about Network SEE INDEX PAGE 10 sis revealed a mean savings of $439 per a third of US inpatients at risk for VTE Clinical receive appropriate prophylaxis. discharge in favor of LMWH. For more info on this topic, see www.drugtopics.com About 62 percent of at-risk patients Amin and fellow researchers searched the MarketScan Hospital Drug received some sort of VTE prophylaxis, Base for patients at risk for VTE who Amin found. But only 34 percent of H2 DRUG TOPICS Januar y 2009 W W W.D R U GTO P I C S .C O M GETTY IMAGES / HALFDARK / FSTOP http://www.drugtopics.com http://WWW.DRUGTOPICS.COM
Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Drug Topics - January 2009 Drug Topics - January 2009 Contents Letters Up Front Up Front in Depth Community Practice Drug Pipeline: What to Watch in 2009 OTC Community-Aquired MRSA Infections New Products Viewpoint Drug Topics - January 2009 Drug Topics - January 2009 - Drug Topics - January 2009 (Page Cover1) Drug Topics - January 2009 - Drug Topics - January 2009 (Page Cover2) Drug Topics - January 2009 - Drug Topics - January 2009 (Page 1) Drug Topics - January 2009 - Drug Topics - January 2009 (Page 2) Drug Topics - January 2009 - Drug Topics - January 2009 (Page 3) Drug Topics - January 2009 - Contents (Page 4) Drug Topics - January 2009 - Contents (Page 5) Drug Topics - January 2009 - Contents (Page 6) Drug Topics - January 2009 - Contents (Page 7) Drug Topics - January 2009 - Contents (Page 8) Drug Topics - January 2009 - Contents (Page 9) Drug Topics - January 2009 - Contents (Page 10) Drug Topics - January 2009 - Contents (Page H1) Drug Topics - January 2009 - Contents (Page H2) Drug Topics - January 2009 - Contents (Page H1) Drug Topics - January 2009 - Contents (Page H2) Drug Topics - January 2009 - Contents (Page H3) Drug Topics - January 2009 - Contents (Page H4) Drug Topics - January 2009 - Contents (Page H5) Drug Topics - January 2009 - Contents (Page H6) Drug Topics - January 2009 - Contents (Page H7) Drug Topics - January 2009 - Contents (Page H8) Drug Topics - January 2009 - Contents (Page 13) Drug Topics - January 2009 - Up Front (Page 14) Drug Topics - January 2009 - Up Front (Page 15) Drug Topics - January 2009 - Up Front (Page 16) Drug Topics - January 2009 - Up Front (Page 17) Drug Topics - January 2009 - Up Front in Depth (Page 18) Drug Topics - January 2009 - Up Front in Depth (Page 19) Drug Topics - January 2009 - Community Practice (Page 20) Drug Topics - January 2009 - Community Practice (Page 20a) Drug Topics - January 2009 - Community Practice (Page 20b) Drug Topics - January 2009 - Community Practice (Page 21) Drug Topics - January 2009 - Drug Pipeline: What to Watch in 2009 (Page 22) Drug Topics - January 2009 - Drug Pipeline: What to Watch in 2009 (Page 23) Drug Topics - January 2009 - Drug Pipeline: What to Watch in 2009 (Page 24) Drug Topics - January 2009 - Drug Pipeline: What to Watch in 2009 (Page 25) Drug Topics - January 2009 - Drug Pipeline: What to Watch in 2009 (Page 26) Drug Topics - January 2009 - Drug Pipeline: What to Watch in 2009 (Page 27) Drug Topics - January 2009 - OTC (Page 28) Drug Topics - January 2009 - OTC (Page 29) Drug Topics - January 2009 - OTC (Page 30) Drug Topics - January 2009 - OTC (Page 31) Drug Topics - January 2009 - Community-Aquired MRSA Infections (Page 32) Drug Topics - January 2009 - Community-Aquired MRSA Infections (Page 33) Drug Topics - January 2009 - Community-Aquired MRSA Infections (Page 34) Drug Topics - January 2009 - Community-Aquired MRSA Infections (Page 35) Drug Topics - January 2009 - Community-Aquired MRSA Infections (Page 36) Drug Topics - January 2009 - Community-Aquired MRSA Infections (Page 37) Drug Topics - January 2009 - Community-Aquired MRSA Infections (Page 38) Drug Topics - January 2009 - Community-Aquired MRSA Infections (Page 39) Drug Topics - January 2009 - Community-Aquired MRSA Infections (Page 40) Drug Topics - January 2009 - Community-Aquired MRSA Infections (Page 41) Drug Topics - January 2009 - New Products (Page 42) Drug Topics - January 2009 - New Products (Page 43) Drug Topics - January 2009 - New Products (Page 44) Drug Topics - January 2009 - New Products (Page 45) Drug Topics - January 2009 - New Products (Page 46) Drug Topics - January 2009 - New Products (Page 47) Drug Topics - January 2009 - Viewpoint (Page 48) Drug Topics - January 2009 - Viewpoint (Page Cover3) Drug Topics - January 2009 - Viewpoint (Page Cover4)
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