A study of codispensing with sodium alendronate in Australia

Area of Science:

• Pharmacovigilance
• Drug utilization studies
• Gastrointestinal health

Background:

• Alendronate is a common treatment for osteoporosis.
• Upper gastrointestinal (GI) disorders are a potential side effect of some medications.
• Understanding concurrent medication use is crucial for patient safety.

Purpose of the Study:

• To determine the percentage of alendronate users also dispensed upper GI drugs.
• To compare GI drug utilization between alendronate and calcitriol users.

Main Methods:

• Utilized the Australian Health Insurance Commission (HIC) Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) database.
• Identified cohorts of patients dispensed alendronate or calcitriol.
• Assessed concurrent dispensing of upper GI drugs within these cohorts.

Main Results:

• 6.7% of alendronate patients and 7.5% of calcitriol patients were dispensed GI drugs.
• H(2)-receptor antagonists were the most common GI drugs used.
• The difference in GI drug use between the two groups was not statistically significant (-0.8% CI: -1.6, 0.1).

Conclusions:

• No increased use of GI drugs was observed in alendronate users compared to calcitriol users.
• The HIC PBS database is a valuable resource for analyzing drug combinations.
• This study supports the safety profile regarding concurrent GI drug use in alendronate patients.