Acute Rhinosinusitis: Prescription Patterns in a Real-World Setting

Area of Science:

• Otolaryngology
• Pharmacology
• Health Services Research

Background:

• Acute rhinosinusitis (ARS) is a common condition with established treatment guidelines.
• Understanding current prescription patterns is crucial for evaluating guideline adherence.

Purpose of the Study:

• To analyze real-world prescription patterns for patients newly diagnosed with ARS.
• To assess the adherence of these prescription patterns to existing medical guidelines.

Main Methods:

• Retrospective analysis of a US administrative claims database (MarketScan).
• Inclusion of 99,033 ARS patients from 2012, with a 10,000-patient matched sample.
• Analysis of prescriptions, procedures, and complications within 12 months post-diagnosis.

Main Results:

• Nearly 90% of ARS patients received prescriptions at the initial visit.
• Antibiotics were prescribed in 84.8% of cases; macrolides were the most common class.
• Significant variability in medication choices and polypharmacy was observed.

Conclusions:

• Real-world ARS treatment exhibits considerable variability.
• There is a need for increased awareness and adherence to established medical guidelines for ARS management.