Trends in the use of antituberculosis drugs in Spain 1993-1998

To determine and analyse the trends in the use of antituberculosis agents in Spain during 1993-1998.

Pharmacoepidemiological study on the use of antituberculosis drugs using the data from prescriptions redeemed by the National Health Service.

The use of antituberculosis drugs over the study period was 6,271,909 defined daily doses (DDDs) in 1993, which fell to 4,433,066 DDDs in 1998. A decreasing trend was thus seen, involving a 29.6% drop between the beginning and the end of the study period. The use of daily doses per 1000 inhabitants was 0.42 in 1993 and 0.30 in the end of the period in 1998. The drug most used during the period of study was Rifinah. In 1993, its percentage of use was 41.2, which then decreased to 34.5 in 1998. After this drug, Rifampicin and Etambutol were those with the highest percentages of use, with values close to 18 and 15, respectively. Regarding estimation of tuberculosis, the prevalence was 25.25 cases per 100,000 inhabitants in 1993 and 16.62 in 1998. A decrease of 23.1% occurred in the cost in pesetas between 1993 and 1998.

Drug's combinations are the most common therapy for tuberculosis and there were important differences between regions. The highest estimation of this disease is in the northwest region of Spain.