Assessment of patients' perceptions and beliefs regarding herbal therapies.

We evaluated the demographics and beliefs regarding safety and efficacy of herbal therapy among individuals in Iowa and assessed the willingness to discuss the use of these products with health care providers. We distributed 1300 surveys to two random samples: patients attending eight clinics, and residents of the state (mailing). Data were categorized according to herb use and compared between users and nonusers. The response rate was 61% (794 people), with 41.6% of respondents reporting herb use. They were predominately white women and were likely to have had education beyond high school (p<0.05). Their use of prescription drugs was high (p<0.05). Although users rated safety and efficacy of herbs higher than nonusers (p<0.05), both groups believed that health care providers should be aware of use and would provide this information.

Newer intranasal migraine medications.

Two new intranasal migraine medications, sumatriptan and dihydroergotamine mesylate, may offer specific advantages for patients who are seeking alternatives to various oral or parenteral migraine abortive therapies. Placebo-controlled clinical studies demonstrate that both intranasal forms are effective in relieving migraine headache pain, but published clinical trial information comparing these two intranasal medications with current abortive therapies is lacking. Both agents are generally well tolerated by patients, with the exception of mild, local adverse reactions of the nose and throat.

Prescription medication costs: a study of physician familiarity.

BACKGROUND: Studies in the past 25 years have suggested that physicians are not familiar with the costs of common prescription medications. OBJECTIVES: To determine physician familiarity with the cost of common prescription medications and to determine the value physicians place on knowing information regarding the cost of medications. DESIGN: Survey. SETTING: Seven community-based family medicine residency teaching clinics in Iowa. PARTICIPANTS: Two hundred five practicing resident and faculty physicians. INTERVENTIONS: From a series of $10 price intervals (range, $0.01-$80.00), physicians were asked to select the interval containing the cash price of the medication to an uninsured patient for 50 medications commonly prescribed in outpatient family medicine clinics. Physicians were also questioned about the value of medication cost information to their practice. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: The percentage of correct responses and the mean pricing scores were calculated for each respondent and for all medications. RESULTS: One hundred seventy-eight physicians responded (86.8%). Only 22.9% of the responses correctly identified the cost of the medication. More than two thirds (68.3%) of the responses underestimated the correct price interval. Branded drugs were underestimated in 89.9% of responses, while generic drugs were overestimated in 90.2% of responses. Overall, 64.4% of physicians believed they did not receive sufficient information in their practices regarding prescription drug costs, and nearly all (93.6%) reported that regular information on prescription medication costs would help them prescribe more cost-effectively. CONCLUSIONS: Physicians are unfamiliar with the costs of medications they commonly prescribe, and they report that regular access to information on prescription medication costs would help them prescribe more cost-effectively. Arch Fam Med. 2000;9:1002-1007