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Younger physicians may be more likely to prescribe CVD drugs
Tocci G. Int J Clin Pract. 2011;65:649-657.
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In an analysis of the EFFECTUS trial, researchers observed that outpatients of younger physicians had a higher prevalence of vascular diseases and, as a result, were prescribed more medications for CVDs than patients of older physicians.
Investigators of the study, appearing in the International Journal of Clinical Practice, looked at data collected during the cross-sectional phase of the EFFECTUS program. The study population was composed of 9,904 outpatients (mean age, 67 years) observed by 1,078 physicians in Italy. The physicians were stratified into three age groups — no older than 45 years (n=219), 46 to 55 years (n=658) and older than 55 years (n=201) — and asked to provide clinical data on the first 10 adult outpatients seen in May 2006.
Investigators found higher rates of MI (P=.003), cerebrovascular disease, primarily stroke (P=.008) and transient ischemic attack (P=.031) in outpatients of physicians aged younger than 45 years vs. physicians aged older than 46 years. Physicians aged younger than 46 years were also more likely to prescribe several CVD medications, including ACE inhibitors (P=.006), antihypertensive drugs (P=.005), beta-blockers (P=.016), insulin (P=.005) and antiplatelet agents (P=.013), as opposed to older physicians who more commonly recommended lifestyle changes.
Additionally, information on CV risk factors were far more regularly recorded by physicians aged older than 45 years, whereas those who were younger provided more updated information on organ damage detection.
As a possible explanation for these discrepancies, the researchers wrote that the relatively low rate of data collection and registration found in younger physicians suggests a potential way to improve global CV risk management in the daily clinical practice.
“On the basis of these considerations, specific training and educational programs for specialized physicians should be carefully considered, to improve quality of care, reduce doctor’s inertia and ameliorate the clinical management of CVDs in Italy,” they said.
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