Prevalence of pain medication prescriptions in France, Germany, and the UK - a cross-sectional study including 4,270,142 patients

Abstract

Objectives: The goal of the present study was to analyze the prevalence of pain medication prescriptions in general practices in France, Germany, and the UK.

Methods: This study included all patients aged ≥18 years followed in 2016 in general practitioner practices in France, Germany and the UK. The primary outcome was the prevalence of patients receiving prescriptions for pain medications in France, Germany, and the UK in 2016. The following drugs were included in the analysis: anti-inflammatory and antirheumatic products, non-steroids and analgesics including opioids, antimigraine preparations, and other analgesics and antipyretics. Demographic variables included age and gender.

Results: This study included 4,270,142 patients. The prevalences of pain medication prescriptions were 57.3% in France, 29.6% in Germany, and 21.7% in the UK. Although this prevalence generally remained consistent between age groups in France (54.3%-60.3%), it increased with age in Germany (18-30 years: 23.8%; >70 years: 35.8%) and in the UK (18-30 years: 9.3%; >70 years: 43.8%). Finally, the prevalence of pain medication prescriptions was higher in women than in men in all three countries. Paracetamol was prescribed to 82.3% and 60.1% of patients receiving pain medication in France and the UK, respectively, whereas ibuprofen was prescribed to 46.5% of individuals in Germany.

Conclusions: The prevalence of pain medication prescriptions was higher in France than in Germany and the UK. Further research is needed to gain a better understanding of the differences in the prescription patterns between these three European countries.

Keywords: France; Germany; Pain medication; prevalence; the UK.