| Theme | Prescription of Therapeutics and Monitoring for the Dialysis Patients | |
|---|---|---|
| Title | Prescription for maintenance hemodialysis patients in Japanese health care | |
| Publish Date | 1999/11 | |
| Author | Chikao Yamazaki | Masuko Memorial Hospital |
| [ Summary ] | Clinical profiles and complications in patients undergoing dialysis treatment are varied, therefore, many kinds of drugs are necessary for proper management of dialysis patients. The cost ratio for drugs, related to total medical expenditurs for dialysis treatment is reported to be only 15.1%, according to a survey performed by the Japanese Association of Dialysis Physicians. However, for average patients at hospitals and/or clinics, as outpatients the rate is 24.9%, according to the Annual Report from the Ministry of Public Welfare. Thus, expense for drugs is considerably lower for dialysis treatment compared with outpatients, as a whole. The Ministry of Public Welfare annually reports the distribution ratio of drug costs, separated by type of disease, and it indicates that the rates for cases with drug cost of more than 1,000 points/month is 18.9% over all, but the value in dialysis treatment is 62.9%. This suggests that the medical expenses for dialysis treatment are high, compared to those of for normal outpatient clinics. Regarding the kind of drug prescribed, the distribution ratio in cases with more than 8 types of drug is 5.9% over all, but it is 40.8% in dialysis treatment. The average number of drug prescriptions per case is 3.27 over all, but is 7.47 in dialysis treatment. This suggests that patients undergoing dialysis treatment need a high number of medications |
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