Evaluation of drug utilisation pattern and cost associated with diabetes mellitusType 2 management in Saudi Arabia

Abstract Diabetic mellitus is an emerging disease in Saudi Arabia. In this regard, a cross-sectional retrospective study was conducted to evaluate drug utilization pattern and the cost associated with non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus disease management in Saudi Arabia. Data retrieved from the electronic pharmacy records during the last one year were employed in this study. World Health Organization (WHO) Defined Daily Dose (DDD) method was employed to compute the daily price of each oral hypoglycaemic agent. The American Diabetes Association (ADA) guidelines and protocols were used to evaluate the level of adherence. A total of 17057 patients were enrolled in the study. Out of the 17057 patients enrolled in the study, 60.06 % (10246) were males and the rest females. In monotherapy, biguanides (metformin) were the most recommended and utilised drugs among 5673 patients (33.25%). The most commonly used drug combination was found to be sitagliptin+metformin (1754 units). The cost per unit dose was highest for liraglutide (A10BJ02) 258.32SR (68.79USD), and lowest for metformin (A10BA02) 0.49SR (0.13 USD). Metformin was the choice drug for the diabetes patients; biguanides (metformin) and DPP-4 (sitagliptins) were the most familiar established dose combination employed. Generic drugs should be used in order to reduce overall cost.

摘要 糖尿病（diabetes mellitus）在沙特阿拉伯正日益流行。为此，本研究开展了一项横断面回顾性研究，旨在评估沙特阿拉伯境内非胰岛素依赖型糖尿病（non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus）的用药模式及疾病管理成本。本研究调取了过去一年的电子药房记录数据进行分析。采用世界卫生组织（World Health Organization, WHO）限定日剂量（Defined Daily Dose, DDD）法计算每种口服降糖药物的单日价格，并以美国糖尿病协会（American Diabetes Association, ADA）指南与诊疗规范评估治疗依从性水平。本研究共纳入17057例患者，其中60.06%（10246例）为男性，剩余为女性。在单药治疗中，双胍类药物（二甲双胍）是最常被推荐和使用的药物，覆盖5673例患者（占比33.25%）。最常用的药物联合方案为西格列汀+二甲双胍（共1754个用药单元）。每单位剂量的成本最高的是利拉鲁肽（A10BJ02），为258.32沙特里亚尔（68.79美元），最低的是二甲双胍（A10BA02），为0.49沙特里亚尔（0.13美元）。二甲双胍是糖尿病患者的首选药物；双胍类药物（二甲双胍）与DPP-4（西格列汀类）是最常用的成熟联合用药方案。应优先使用仿制药以降低整体治疗成本。