Drug use in the United States in 1981
C. Baum, D. L. Kennedy, M. B. Forbes and J. K. Jones
This study provides national estimates of outpatient prescription drug use
based on pharmaceutical marketing data. An analysis of total outpatient
exposure from 1971 through 1981, generated from data on population and
prescription size as well as total prescriptions, indicated that overall
drug use is increasing. Overall use was also analyzed by patient age and
sex, geographic region, and physician specialty. Data are presented for the
most frequently used drug categories and therapeutic classes. Ranking drug
chemicals across different products and therapeutic indications, which is a
more precise measure of population exposure, indicated that nearly one of
every ten prescriptions in 1981 contained either hydrochlorothiazide or
codeine.
