Evidence map›Paper›PMID 26883524›Full record

ArticleJournal of general internal medicine2016

Variations in Patients' Perceptions and Use of Generic Drugs: Results of a National Survey.

Aaron S Kesselheim, Joshua J Gagne, Jessica M Franklin, Wesley Eddings, Lisa A Fulchino, Jerry Avorn, Eric G Campbell

Open access · bronzeAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Journal of general internal medicine, 2016. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 35 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
35citing papers in PubMed, 2 pooled it
26.4field-weighted citation impact, top 1% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

35 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 68 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Influencers of generic drug utilization: A systematic review.Research in social & administrative pharmacy : RSAP · 2018
    Pooled it
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  11. An exploration of factors influencing the selection of generic and innovator medicines in Saudi Arabia using an observational cross-sectional study.Saudi pharmaceutical journal : SPJ : the official publication of the Saudi Pharmaceutical Society · 2024
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  17. Utilization of Generic Cardiovascular Drugs in Medicare's Part D Program.Circulation. Cardiovascular quality and outcomes · 2021
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

7 authors at 3 institutions in 1 country.

Aaron S KesselheimDivision of Pharmacoepidemiology and Pharmacoeconomics, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, 1620 Tremont Street Suite 3030, Boston, MA, USA. akesselheim@partners.org.
Joshua J GagneDivision of Pharmacoepidemiology and Pharmacoeconomics, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, 1620 Tremont Street Suite 3030, Boston, MA, USA.
Jessica M FranklinDivision of Pharmacoepidemiology and Pharmacoeconomics, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, 1620 Tremont Street Suite 3030, Boston, MA, USA.
Wesley EddingsDivision of Pharmacoepidemiology and Pharmacoeconomics, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, 1620 Tremont Street Suite 3030, Boston, MA, USA.
Lisa A FulchinoDivision of Pharmacoepidemiology and Pharmacoeconomics, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, 1620 Tremont Street Suite 3030, Boston, MA, USA.
Jerry AvornDivision of Pharmacoepidemiology and Pharmacoeconomics, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, 1620 Tremont Street Suite 3030, Boston, MA, USA.
Eric G CampbellMongan Institute for Health Policy, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA.
Harvard University · USBrigham and Women's Hospital · USMassachusetts General Hospital · US

Funding

Assessing Clinical Equivalence for Generic Drugs Approved By Innovative MethodsU01FD004856 · FDA · BRIGHAM AND WOMEN'S HOSPITAL · PI KESSELHEIM, AARON SETH · 2013 to 2013
$248k
FDA HHS U01 FD004856
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundOver 84 % of all prescriptions in the US are filled as generic drugs, though in prior surveys, patients reported concerns about their quality.

objectiveWe aimed to survey patients' perceptions and use of generic drugs.

designOur survey (administered August 2014) assessed patients' skepticism about generic drug safety and effectiveness and how often they requested brand-name drugs. Chi-square tests and two-sample t-tests assessed associations between patient demographics and the outcomes.

participantsOur sample frame was the CVS Advisor Panel, a national database of 124,621 CVS customers. We randomly selected 1450 patients with self-reported chronic conditions who filled at least one prescription in the prior 3 months. MAIN MEASURES: We assessed how often patients reported asking their physicians to prescribe a brand-name over a generic drug in the last year, and "generic skepticism," defined as not believing generic drugs were as safe, effective, had the same side effects, and contained the same active ingredients as brand-name drugs. KEY

resultsOf the 1,442 patients with valid addresses, 933 responded (65 % response rate) and 753 took the full survey. A vast majority (83 %) agreed that physicians should prescribe generic drugs when available, and 54 % said they had not asked their physicians to prescribe a brand-name drug over a generic in the past year. Most respondents considered generic drugs to be as effective (87 %) and safe (88 %) as their brand-name counterparts, and to have the same side effects (80 %) and active ingredients (84 %). Non-Caucasians were more likely than Caucasians to request a brand-name drug over a generic (56 % vs. 43 %, p < 0.01), and were also more skeptical of generic drugs' clinical equivalence (43 % vs. 29 %, p < 0.01).

conclusionsWe found a substantial shift towards more patients having positive views of generic drugs, but lingering negative perceptions will have to be overcome to ensure continued cost-savings and improved patient outcomes from generic drugs.

Indexed as

Health Knowledge, Attitudes, PracticeAdultAgedDatabases, FactualDrug CostsDrug PrescriptionsDrugs, GenericDrug UtilizationFemaleHealth Care SurveysHealth Services ResearchHumansMaleMiddle AgedPhysician-Patient RelationsPractice Patterns, Physicians'Drugs, GenericFDAgeneric drugspatient survey

Identifiers

PMID26883524
PMCPMC4870419
OpenAlexW2277217989

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.