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Compliance and persistence with Alzheimer's disease treatment: a retrospective analysis of multiregional hospital databases in Thailand

Kongpakwattana K, Dilokthornsakul P, Dejthevaporn C, Pattanaprateep O, Chaiyakunapruk N

J Med Econ, 2019 Jan;22(1):26-34.
PMID: 30303420 DOI: 10.1080/13696998.2018.1534739

Aims: Due to the lack of studies evaluating compliance or persistence with Alzheimer's Disease (AD) treatment outside High-Income Countries (HICs), this study aimed to assess compliance, persistence, and factors associated with non-compliance and non-persistence by utilizing existing "real-world" information from multiregional hospital databases in Thailand.Materials and methods: Study subjects were retrospectively identified from databases of five hospitals located in different regions across Thailand. AD patients aged ≥60 years who were newly-prescribed with donepezil, galantamine, rivastigmine, or memantine between 2013 and 2017 were eligible for analysis. The Medication Possession Ratio (MPR) was used as a proxy for compliance, while the Kaplan-Meier survival analysis was employed to estimate persistence. Logistic and Cox regressions were used to assess determinants of non-compliance and non-persistence, adjusted for age and gender.Results: Among 698 eligible patients, mean (SD) MPR was 0.83 (0.25), with 70.3% of the patients compliant to the treatment (having MPR ≥ 0.80). Half of the patients discontinued their treatment (having a treatment gap >30 days) within 177 days with a 1-year persistence probability of 21.1%. The patients treated in the university-affiliated hospital were more likely to be both non-compliant (OR = 1.71; 95% CI = 1.21-2.42) and non-persistent (HR = 1.33; 95% CI = 1.12-1.58). In addition, non-compliance was higher for those prescribed with single AD treatment (OR = 2.52; 95% CI = 1.35-4.69), while non-persistence was higher for those unable to reimburse for AD treatment (HR = 1.34; 95% CI = 1.11-1.62).Limitations: By using retrospective databases, a difficulty in validating whether the medications are actually taken after being refilled may over-estimate the levels of compliance and persistence. Meanwhile, possible random coding errors may under-estimate the strength of association findings.Conclusions: This study reveals the situation of compliance and persistence on AD treatment for the first time outside HICs. The determinants of non-compliance and non-persistence underline key areas for improvement.
Economic Evaluation of Intravenous Immunoglobulin plus Corticosteroids for the Treatment of Steroid-Resistant Chronic Inflammatory Demyelinating Polyradiculoneuropathy in Thailand

Bamrungsawad N, Upakdee N, Pratoomsoot C, Sruamsiri R, Dilokthornsakul P, Dechanont S, et al.

Clin Drug Investig, 2016 Jul;36(7):557-66.
PMID: 27113227 DOI: 10.1007/s40261-016-0401-3

Intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG) has been recommended for steroid-resistant chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyradiculoneuropathy (CIDP). The treatment, however, is very costly to healthcare system, and there remains no evidence of its economic justifiability. This study aimed to conduct an economic evaluation (EE) of IVIG plus corticosteroids in steroid-resistant CIDP in Thailand.
A Real-World Evidence Analysis of Associations Among Costs, Quality of Life, and Disease-Severity Indicators of Alzheimer's Disease in Thailand

Kongpakwattana K, Dejthevaporn C, Krairit O, Dilokthornsakul P, Mohan D, Chaiyakunapruk N

Value Health, 2019 10;22(10):1137-1145.
PMID: 31563256 DOI: 10.1016/j.jval.2019.04.1937

BACKGROUND: Although an increase in the burden of Alzheimer's disease (AD) is evident worldwide, knowledge of costs and health-related quality of life (HRQOL) associated with AD in low- and middle-income countries is still lacking.
OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to collect real-world cost and HRQOL data, and investigate their associations with multiple disease-severity indicators among AD patients in Thailand.
METHODS: We recruited AD patients aged ≥60 years accompanied by their caregivers at a university-affiliated tertiary hospital. A one-time structured interview was conducted to collect disease-severity indicators, HRQOL, and caregiving information using standardized tools. The hospital's database was used to retrieve healthcare resource utilization occurred over 6 months preceding the interview date. Costs were annualized and stratified based on cognitive status. Generalized linear models were employed to evaluate determinants of costs and HRQOL.
RESULTS: Among 148 community-dwelling patients, average annual total societal costs of AD care were $8014 (95% confidence interval [CI]: $7295-$8844) per patient. Total costs of patients with severe stage ($9860; 95% CI: $8785-$11 328) were almost twice as high as those of mild stage ($5524; 95% CI: $4649-$6593). The major cost driver was direct medical costs, particularly those incurred by AD prescriptions. Functional status was the strongest determinant for both total costs and patient's HRQOL (P value
Fulltext Diagnosing peripheral neuropathy in South-East Asia: A focus on diabetic neuropathy

Malik RA, Andag-Silva A, Dejthevaporn C, Hakim M, Koh JS, Pinzon R, et al.

J Diabetes Investig, 2020 Sep;11(5):1097-1103.
PMID: 32268012 DOI: 10.1111/jdi.13269

Burning and stabbing pain in the feet and lower limbs can have a significant impact on the activities of daily living, including walking, climbing stairs and sleeping. Peripheral neuropathy in particular is often misdiagnosed or underdiagnosed because of a lack of awareness amongst both patients and physicians. Furthermore, crude screening tools, such as the 10-g monofilament, only detect advanced neuropathy and a normal test will lead to false reassurance of those with small fiber mediated painful neuropathy. The underestimation of peripheral neuropathy is highly prevalent in the South-East Asia region due to a lack of consensus guidance on routine screening and diagnostic pathways. Although neuropathy as a result of diabetes is the most common cause in the region, other causes due to infections (human immunodeficiency virus, hepatitis B or C virus), chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy, drug-induced neuropathy (cancer chemotherapy, antiretrovirals and antituberculous drugs) and vitamin deficiencies (vitamin B1 , B6 , B12 , D) should be actively excluded.
Fulltext Clinical practice with steroid therapy for Duchenne muscular dystrophy: An expert survey in Asia and Oceania

Takeuchi F, Nakamura H, Yonemoto N, Komaki H, Rosales RL, Kornberg AJ, et al.

Brain Dev, 2020 Mar;42(3):277-288.
PMID: 31980267 DOI: 10.1016/j.braindev.2019.12.005

BACKGROUND: Several studies on clinical practice for Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) have been conducted in Western countries. However, there have been only a few similar studies in Asia and Oceania. Here, we investigate the steroid therapy-related clinical practice for DMD among the local experts. In 2015, we conducted a DMD expert survey in Asia and Oceania to acquire information regarding patients with DMD and to assess current clinical practice with the cooperation of Asian and Oceanian Myology Centre, a neuromuscular disease research network.
RESULTS: We obtained survey responses from 87 out of 148 clinicians (62%) from 13 countries and regions. In China, 1385 DMD patients were followed-up by 5 respondent neurologists, and 84% were between 0 and 9 years of age (15% were 10-19 years, 1% > 19 years). While in Japan, 1032 patients were followed-up by 20 clinicians, and the age distribution was similar between the 3 groups (27% were 0-9 years, 35% were 10-19 years, 38% were >19 years). Most respondent clinicians (91%) were aware of DMD standard of care recommendations. Daily prednisolone/prednisone administration was used most frequently at initiation (N = 45, 64%). Inconsistent opinion on steroid therapy after loss of ambulation and medication for bone protection was observed.
CONCLUSIONS: Rare disease research infrastructures have been underdeveloped in many of Asian and Oceanian countries. In this situation, our results show the snapshots of current medical situation and clinical practice in DMD. For further epidemiological studies, expansion of DMD registries is necessary.