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Presence of sales rep may influence physicians’ choice of DES
A study published in the American Heart Journal has found a link between the presence of a sales representative and the increased usage of the company’s drug-eluting stents, an association that led to higher procedural costs.
“The presence of a sale representative not only increased the company's market share, mainly in the more profitable DES market, but also shifted toward the use of a DES when the company's products were used,” the investigators wrote.
For the study, researchers from Ontario and British Columbia, Canada, retrospectively examined medical records of 1,145 consecutive patients who underwent PCI in an academic institution over a 1-year period. They compared use of bare-metal stents, DES and anti-CD34 antibody-coated stents according to company presence.
Among patients, 1,785 stents were implanted, 60.8% of which were DES, 38.1% were BMS and 1.1% were antibody-coated stents. Researchers observed that more DES per case were implanted when a representative was present (1.71 ± 0.9 vs. 1.60 ± 0.93; P=.023); this increased use was true with all companies marketing DES. However, this association was not observed in the utilization of BMS or antibody-coated stents.
Also of note, the cost of stent used per case was higher when a representative was present (Canadian $1,703.5 ± 1,314.4 vs. Canadian $1,468.9 ± 1,273.3; P≤.001).
As a result, the researchers concluded that institutions and industry should have criteria regarding interaction between physicians and industry representatives to allow quality patient care and maintain education and research activities.
Disclosure: The researchers report no relevant financial disclosures.