IMS finds variability in access and use of pharmacotherapies by EU's older citizens

Access and use of pharmaceutical products by older citizens varies widely across 25 European Union member countries, according to a new study by IMS Health. While the differences reflect varying approaches by health systems to managing treatment demand, effective healthcare delivery requires an understanding of the underlying sources of these differences - especially as the rapid increase of Europeans aged 61 and older strains social resources throughout the EU.

IMS found high levels of variation in the consumption of medications for treating major disease areas afflicting older citizens, such as neurodegenerative diseases, respiratory disease, osteoporosis and dyslipidemia. While attributable in part to epidemiology and other factors, the variance also suggests inefficiencies in pharmaceutical utilization - either from over or under-use. For example, per capita usage of drugs to treat Alzheimer's disease in the five EU countries where utilization was highest was 20 times greater than in the five lowest-use countries.

Variations will be accentuated