Utilization of Western medicine and traditional Chinese medicine among patients with Alzheimer's disease in Taiwan: a nationwide population-based study.
Eur J Neurol
; 24(9): 1166-1172, 2017 09.
Article
em En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-28744942
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE:
Large-scale studies of utilization of medical services among patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD) are lacking. We aimed to investigate the usage of Western medicine and traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) among these patients in Taiwan.METHODS:
We analyzed one million samples from the National Health Insurance Research Database in Taiwan. Patients (n = 1814) newly diagnosed with AD in 2001-2010 were divided into TCM users (n = 528) and non-TCM users (n = 1286).RESULTS:
Compared with non-TCM users, TCM users were younger, had a higher femalemale ratio and higher utilization rate of Western medicine. The median interval between diagnosis and the first TCM consultation was 7.92 months. Donepezil and rivastigmine were commonly prescribed medications. Chinese herbal medicine was the most popular treatment among TCM users.CONCLUSIONS:
This study revealed the specific usage patterns of TCM and non-TCM medical services among patients with AD. The information could be used for improving the healthcare of patients with AD.Palavras-chave
Texto completo:
1
Base de dados:
MEDLINE
Medicinas Tradicionais:
Medicinas_tradicionales_de_asia
/
Medicina_china
Métodos Terapêuticos e Terapias MTCI:
Terapias_biologicas
Assunto principal:
Doença de Alzheimer
/
Medicina Tradicional Chinesa
Tipo de estudo:
Diagnostic_studies
País/Região como assunto:
Asia
Idioma:
En
Revista:
Eur J Neurol
Ano de publicação:
2017
Tipo de documento:
Article