- The top three research areas for this month comprise a total of 8 publications on the nervous system, 4 publications on the circulatory system, and 3 publications on endocrinology. These findings have been published in "Translational Stroke Research," "Clinical and Translational Science," and "Journal of Dental Sciences" journals.
- Selected Paper in August：The Antiplatelet drug Clopidogrel has comparable efficacy whether it is generic drug or brand drug.
Generic drugs refer to medications produced by other pharmaceutical companies once the patent for the original brand drug has expired. These companies can replicate the formula submitted by the original brand drug manufacturer during the patent application process, and offer the drugs with equivalent therapeutic effects. However, there were still many patients or medical staff who do not believe that the efficacy of the two is similar. The Chang Gung Memorial Hospital research team used health insurance claims data to compare the efficacy of the original antiplatelet drug Clopidogrel and its generic version in patients with myocardial infarction.
The results showed that there was no statistically significant difference between the two groups in preventing recurrence of myocardial infarction, reinstalling stents, cerebral infarction or reducing mortality. And there was no significant difference in bleeding complications between the two groups. It means that the efficacy of generic drugs produced by many pharmaceutical companies is not less than that of original drugs, but the cost is much lower.
This study has several limitations. The number of patients prescribed generic drugs was significantly lower than the number prescribed brand drugs, and many were prescribed generic drugs one year after myocardial infarction. Although we controlled the interference by using propensity score, the interference cannot be eliminated. In addition, there were some considerations when doctor decided to prescribe brand or generic drugs. These factors cannot be known from the health insurance claims data.
Highlight of AUG (2023) ：This month's primary research focuses on the risk of stroke due to drug treatments for diabetes and kidney failure, the effectiveness of generic drugs in preventing myocardial infarction, and the preventive effects of fluoride treatment on children's dental health.
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