Table 3.
Pre-period medication use1among patients initiating duloxetine or venlafaxine XR.
| Duloxetine | Venlafaxine XR | P value | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| n | % | n | % | ||
| Antidepressant—SNRI | 16 | 1.8% | 10 | 0.8% | 0.036 |
| Antidepressant—TCAs | 228 | 25.1% | 273 | 21.2% | 0.034 |
| Antidepressant—MAOIs | 8 | 0.9% | 4 | 0.3% | 0.075 |
| Antidepressant—SSRI | 679 | 74.7% | 985 | 76.6% | 0.307 |
| Antidepressant—Other | 170 | 18.7% | 236 | 18.4% | 0.835 |
| Anxiolytics/hypnotics/muscle relaxants2 | 406 | 44.7% | 530 | 41.2% | 0.107 |
| Antipsychotics | 135 | 14.9% | 201 | 15.6% | 0.618 |
| Stimulants | 12 | 1.3% | 11 | 0.9% | 0.292 |
| Antimanics | 19 | 2.1% | 21 | 1.6% | 0.43 |
| Anticonvulsants | 86 | 9.5% | 66 | 5.1% | <0.001 |
| Analgesics—opioids3 | 329 | 36.2% | 305 | 23.7% | <0.001 |
| Analgesics—non-opioids | 427 | 47.0% | 436 | 33.9% | <0.001 |
| Analgesics—migraine medications | 57 | 6.3% | 86 | 6.7% | 0.697 |
| Cardiovascular Disease Medications | 340 | 37.4% | 324 | 25.2% | <0.001 |
| Antihyperlipidemics | 189 | 20.8% | 124 | 9.6% | <0.001 |
| Antihypertensives | 230 | 25.3% | 186 | 14.5% | <0.001 |
| Other medications | 108 | 11.9% | 120 | 9.3% | 0.054 |
| Thyroid hormones | 68 | 7.5% | 67 | 5.2% | 0.029 |
| Antidiabetics | 72 | 7.9% | 48 | 3.7% | <0.001 |
| GI medications | 381 | 41.9% | 429 | 33.4% | <0.001 |
| Respiratory medications | 157 | 17.3% | 195 | 15.2% | 0.185 |
1Medications were evaluated during 12-month pre-index period.
2Included sedatives, hypnotics, muscle relaxants, and all benzodiazepines, some of which are used to treat conditions other than anxiety or insomnia.
3Included all medications under BNF “Opioid analgesics” except codeine formulations used to treat diarrhea and migraine medications that contain codeine (e.g., Migraleve).