J Clin Neurol.
2022 Mar;18(2):179-193. 10.3988/jcn.2022.18.2.179.
Trends in Prescribing of Antiseizure Medications in South Korea: Real-World Evidence for Treated Patients With Epilepsy
- Affiliations
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- 1Departments of Neurology, Chonnam National University Hospital, Gwangju, Korea
- 2School of Pharmacy, Sungkyunkwan University, Suwon, Korea
- 3Department of Biohealth Regulatory Science, Sungkyunkwan University, Suwon, Korea
- 4Samsung Advanced Institute for Health Sciences & Technology (SAIHST), Sungkyunkwan University, Seoul, Korea
- 5Department of Neurology, Soonchunhyang University Bucheon Hospital, Bucheon, Korea
- 6Department of Neurology, Kangwon National University School of Medicine, Chuncheon, Korea
- 7Medical Bigdata Convergence, Kangwon National University, Chuncheon, Korea
- KMID: 2526880
- DOI: http://doi.org/10.3988/jcn.2022.18.2.179
Abstract
- Background and Purpose
We investigated the trends in the prescribing of antiseizure medication (ASM) over a 9-year period, and provide real-world data regarding ASM prescriptions of patients with epilepsy in South Korea.
Methods
This study used data in the Korean National Health Information Database for the period from 2009 to 2017. We included 18 oral ASMs, which were classified into older and newer ASMs based on them first becoming available on the market before or after 1991, respectively. The annual trends in ASM prescriptions were plotted over the 9-year study period, and changes in these trends were evaluated as average annual percentage changes (AAPCs) using Poisson regression. Age- and sex-stratified analyses were also conducted.
Results
Overall, the proportion of prescriptions involving polytherapy with three or more ASMs increased from 10.08% in 2009 to 10.99% in 2017 (AAPC=0.9%, p<0.001) over the 9-year study period. Among monotherapies, although valproate (VPA) was the most frequently prescribed ASM, the prescription rate of levetiracetam (LEV) steadily increased regardless of age and sex over the study period. The monotherapy prescription trends differed depending on age and sex. In the five most frequently used ASM combination regimens, the prescription rates of VPA/LEV, LEV/oxcarbazepine, and LEV/lamotrigine regimens showed increasing tendencies. In contrast, prescription rates for all combined regimens of older ASMs declined over time in all age groups.
Conclusions
This is the first epidemiological study of the changes in prescription trends for ASM in South Korea based on nationwide data from 2009 to 2017. We found progressive increases in the use of newer ASMs for both monotherapy and duotherapy, and for polytherapy with three or more ASMs over the 9-year study period.
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