Treatment persistence and adherence and their consequences on patient outcomes of generic versus brand-name statins routinely used to treat high cholesterol levels in Spain: a retrospective cost-consequences analysis.

backgroundHigh blood lipoprotein concentrations are one of the major risk factors for cardiovascular diseases. Drug therapy is the base of treatment; statins in particular. Both brand-name and generic presentations are available for statin therapy of high cholesterol levels. Factors that may influence their use in routine medical practice include, among others, patient persistence and adherence to treatment as prescribed by physicians. The aim of this retrospective analysis was to provide real-world evidence of treatment persistence and adherence and their consequences on economic and patient outcomes of generic versus brand-name statins routinely used to treat high cholesterol levels in Spain.

methodsExisting real-world electronic medical records abstracted from a database of two regions in Spain were analyzed. The analysis compared generic versus brand-name statins data from subjects' who started treatment between July 1, 2010 and June 30, 2012. Treatment persistence, adherence expressed as medication possession ratio (MPR), healthcare resource utilization and their costs were analyzed together with patient's at-goal rates of low-density-lipoprotein-cholesterol (LDL-c), incidence of any major cardiovascular event (CVE) and all-cause mortality during a 5-year follow-up period. Multivariate analyses were applied.

resultsA total of 13,244 records were included. Persistence was lower with generics; adjusted hazard ratio -HR- [95% confidence interval]: 0.86 [0.82-0.91], p < 0.001) and MPR was also lower: 61.5% vs. 65.1% (p < 0.001). Less patients with generics reached their LDL-c goal: 39.2% [38.3-40.2%] vs. 42.0% [40.2-43.7%]; adjusted odds ratio; 0.87 [0.80-0.95], p = 0.003. Compared to brand-name statins, the observed probability of occurrence of a CVE; HR: 1.31 [1.15-1.50], p < 0.001, and also all-cause deaths; HR: 1.36 [1.15-1.62], was significantly higher with generics; p < 0.001 in both cases. Adjusted mean total healthcare cost per patient was also higher with generic than with brand-name statins: €9118 (9059-9176) vs. €7980 (7853-8808) [adjusted difference: €1137 (997-1277), p < 0.001].

conclusionThis retrospective cost-consequences analysis found poorer treatment persistence and adherence in patients who first started therapy with generic instead of brand-name statins in routine medical practice in Spain. Also, patients receiving generics were more unlikely to reach LDL-c goals, showed increased probability of having CVE and all-cause mortality at a higher cost to payers.