ATLANTA, Oct. 20 /PRNewswire/ -- In response to numerous inquiries, NDCHealth today provided more details concerning the study and the results contained in its October 6, 2004 announcement, which tracked market reaction to Merck & Co.'s worldwide recall of its Cox-2 inhibitor, Vioxx.
In determining the potential percentage of long-term Vioxx users in the United States, NDCHealth utilized its proprietary longitudinal healthcare claims database, the Intelligent Health Repository (IHR), to review Vioxx use during the time period of August 2001 through and including September 2004.
During that approximate three-year time period, the IHR indicated that more than 3.1 million people in the United States had filled at least one Vioxx prescription. This population was then segmented into one of two categories: (1) Potential Long-Term Users and (2) Potential Short-Term Users. Potential Long-Term Users were defined as individuals who had filled at least two or more Vioxx prescriptions in a time period greater than six months. Potential Short-Term Users were defined as those individuals who had filled only one Vioxx prescriptions during the study timeframe and those that had filled one or more Vioxx prescriptions within a time period of less than six months. Of the 3.1 million Vioxx users selected for the study, 24% were defined as Potential Long-Term Users and 76% as Potential Short-Term Users. All Short-Term Users of Vioxx were then specifically excluded by NDCHealth from its study.
Potential Long-Term Users were then placed into one of three categories based upon the potential length of their therapy timeframes: (1) six months to 11 months; (2) one year to 17 months; and (3) 18 months or longer.
Among all Potential Long-Term Users, 43% filled at least one other Vioxx prescription six to 11 months following their initial prescription; 25% filled at least one other Vioxx prescription one year to 17 months following their initial prescription, and 32% filled at least one other Vioxx prescription at 18 months or later.
Vioxx is indicated for the relief of the signs and symptoms of osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis, for the management of acute pain and for treatment of primary dysmenorrhea. Analyses conducted did not assess whether or not users were taking Vioxx for acute or chronic treatment and whether or not use was continuous.
NDCHealth’s IHR database meets all applicable information protection requirements set forth by HIPAA.
About the NDCHealth Intelligent Network
NDCHealth currently operates one of the largest, automated healthcare claims management clearinghouse in North America, executing over 4.8 billion transactions annually for hospitals, pharmacies, physicians and health insurance companies. These transactions comprise more than 45 percent of all electronic healthcare claims in the United States.
About NDCHealth Corporation
NDCHealth is uniquely positioned in healthcare as the leader in point-of- care systems, electronic connectivity and information solutions to pharmacies,
hospitals, physicians and payers. For more information, please contact the company at http://www.ndchealth.com/ .
NDCHealth is a trademark of NDCHealth Corporation. All other company and product names mentioned may be trademarks of the company.
NDCHealth Corporation
CONTACT: Robin Wrinn of NDCHealth Corporation, +1-404-728-2214, orrobin.wrinn@ndchealth.com
Web site: http://www.ndchealth.com/