SUMMARYA trial was carried out to determine if walking unpremedicated patients to the operating theatre would prove acceptable to the patients. One hundred surgical patients from a short‐stay ward were randomised into experimental (walked to theatre by ward nurse) and control (taken to theatre on a hospital trolley) groups. Seventy‐eight patients responded to a questionnaire; a large majority indicated they would like to be given the choice of mode of conveyance and perceived this as an improvement in patient care. The results showed that a more favourable impression of walking to the theatre was given by patients who had actually experienced it, and of those given the opportunity to walk, almost all reported that it made them feel more relaxed. The findings are discussed in relation to patient choice, efficiency gains and a reduction in manual handling.
OBJECTIVE: To compare rheumatoid arthritis (RA) treatment charges with a cyclooxygenase‐2 specific inhibitor (COX‐2) versus a non‐steroidal anti‐inflammatory drug (NSAID) therapies in a managed care population. METHODS: Patients with a diagnosis of RA between January 1 and June 30, 1999 who had prescriptions for COX‐2s or NSAIDs were selected from the PharMetrics Integrated Outcomes Database. Patients were excluded if they had osteoarthritis or did not have 6 months of continuous enrollment following the first (index) COX‐2 or NSAID pharmacy claim. COX‐2 and NSAID‐treated groups were compared on their demographics, comorbidities, and total RA‐specific charges during the 6 month follow‐up period RESULTS: A total of 5,261 patients met the patient selection criteria, including 668 who received COX‐2 and 4,593 who received NSAID. The COX‐2 group was older (53.7 versus 49.6 years, p < 0.0001) on average and more likely to have at least one comorbidity (46.0% vs. 31.9%, p < 0.001) compared to the NSAID group. They also had higher RA‐related pharmacy ($914 versus $636) and medical charges ($611 versus $566). Total mean charges for the COX‐2 cohort were $323 higher (p = 0.019) than the NSAID cohort. CONCLUSION: In this initial cost comparison between COX‐2s and NSAIDs, the mean charge for a 6‐month period with COX‐2s was 27% higher than with NSAIDs, mainly due to higher pharmacy charges. Longer‐term studies are required to examine whether the higher acquisition costs of COX‐2 are offset by savings in the costs of treating gastrotoxicity.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
customersupport@researchsolutions.com
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.
Copyright © 2025 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.