21.01.14
Alzheimer’s prescriptions higher than expected
A new report from the Health and Social Care Information Centre (HSCIC) shows the extent to which the NHS is prescribing NICE-recommended medicines.
The experimental statistics, from 2012, compare the expected with actual usage for 18 medicines in ten groups. All groups have risen in use over the last few years.
The drugs with higher prescription rates than expected were for Alzheimer’s disease and brain cancer. Those prescribed as expected were to treat diabetes, breast cancer and gastric cancer.
Treatments for a form of brain tumour, renal cell cancer, a form of motor neuron disease and age-related macular degeneration were all used less than expected.
But the HSCIC stated: “When interpreting these figures it is important to note that higher or lower usage may occur for a variety of reasons and is not necessarily a sign of ‘under’ or ‘over’ prescribing.”
Dr Simon Ridley, head of research at Alzheimer’s Research UK, said: “Although the report’s authors caution that there is some uncertainty around these figures, and the reasons for the prescribing rates are unclear from this data, the findings serve to highlight the huge scale of the problem posed by dementia today. Alzheimer’s disease is the most common cause of dementia, affecting around half a million people in the UK with a devastating impact both for individuals and for society as a whole.
"The treatments examined in this report do not affect the course of the disease, and although they offer some relief from some of the symptoms, their effects wear off over time. There is still a desperate need for effective treatments that can act against the disease process, as well as strategies to prevent the disease, but sustained investment in research is crucial if we are to achieve this.”
The report was commissioned by the Department of Health and produced in collaboration with NICE and the pharmaceutical industry.
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