Discontinuation of reimbursement of benzodiazepines in the Netherlands: does it make a difference?

BMC Primary Care

Table 1 Mean number of prescription days and (mean) number of type of users between 2007 and 2010

	Trimesters
	2007				2008				Mean (%)	2009				2010				Mean (%)	Difference means (p)
	1	2	3	4	1	2	3	4		1	2	3	4	1	2	3	4
Mean number of prescription days	12.98ǂ	15.45	15.65	15.94	15.51	16.14	15.98	16.90	*15.57*	13.34	13.03	13.05	13.38	13.23	13.56	13.61	14.48	*13.46*	*2.11*
Type of user
no user	ǂ	2642	2614	2608	2586	2619	2623	2532	*2603 (56.2)*	2597	2698	2802	2704	2645	2653	2642	2541	*2660 (60.0)*	*-56.82 (<0.001)*
initial	ǂ	458	404	449	417	399	389	435	*422 (9.1)*	270	365	363	429	378	367	351	408	*366 (8.3)*	*55.20 (<0.001)*
short-term	ǂ	612	604	624	636	620	642	662	*629 (13.6)*	762	513	518	521	559	514	533	509	*554 (12.5)*	*74.95 (<0.001)*
long-term	ǂ	556	591	580	580	594	592	606	*586 (12.7)*	454	461	445	447	445	474	467	483	*460 (10.4)*	*126.07 (<0.001)*
Quitter	ǂ	365	427	385	431	404	364	345	*389 (8.4)*	475	496	357	340	390	378	342	340	*390 (8.8)*	*-1.04 (<0.046)*
Total	ǂ	4633	4640	4646	4650	4636	4610	4580	*4629 (100)*	4558	4533	4485	4441	4417	4386	4335	4281	*4430 (100)*
Supplementary analysis of short vs. long term users
short-term	1131	1100	1031	1109	1089	1057	1073	1138	*1091*	1071	904	909	981	972	916	922	949	*953*	*138*
long-term	459	583	615	598	602	628	617	626	*591*	467	478	465	459	460	489	483	509	*476*	*114.75*
Total	1590	1683	1646	1707	1691	1685	1690	1764	*1682*	1538	1382	1374	1440	1432	1405	1405	1458	*1429*

ǂ The first trimester of 2007 is omitted due to or affected by the unavailability of information of prescription days from the preceding trimester. Because of this, no information on initial users and quitters was available for the first trimester of 2007. As a consequence, presenting information on short-term and long-term users would generate an overestimation when compared to the information on short-term and long-term users in the following trimesters. Mean is based on the trimester means of the preceding two years.

ISSN: 2731-4553