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(Stroke. 2008;39:2880.)
© 2008 American Heart Association, Inc.

Research Letters

Secondary Prevention in a Large Stroke Population

A Study of Patients’ Purchase of Recommended Drugs

Björn Wettermark, MSc, PhD; Anna Persson, MSc Mia von Euler, MD, PhD

From the Division of Clinical Pharmacology, Department of Laboratory Medicine (B.W.), and the Division of Neurology, Department of Clinical Neuroscience (M.v.E.), Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden; and the Department of Pharmaceutical Biosciences, Faculty of Pharmacy (A.P.), Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden.

Correspondence to Björn Wettermark, Centre for Pharmacoepidemiology, Karolinska Institutet, Clinical Epidemiological Unit M9:01, Karolinska University Hospital, SE-171 76 Stockholm, Sweden. E-mail bjorn.wettermark{at}ki.se

Background and Purpose— In this study, linked, anonymous data from The National Hospital Discharge Register and the Swedish Prescribed Drug Register were used for studying to what extent recommended drugs for secondary prevention after stroke and TIA were purchased by patients in the region of Stockholm, Sweden (2 million inhabitants).

Methods— Data on purchased drugs for secondary stroke prevention during July 2005 to June 2006 by 17 902 patients >18 years discharged after stroke or TIA during the period 1997 to June 2005 were analyzed by age, gender, and year of discharge.

Results— Antiplatelets and warfarin were purchased by 87% of all stroke and 83% of all TIA patients, antihypertensives by 74% and 70%, and lipid lowering drugs by 41% and 39%, respectively.

Conclusion— Time after discharge had only a minor influence on the proportion of patients purchasing the medicines.

Key Words: stroke • TIA • secondary prevention • guidelines • drug therapy