title: Use of Chinese medicine correlates negatively with the consumption of conventional medicine and medical cost in patients with uterine fibroids: a population-based retrospective cohort study in Taiwan.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Chinese medicine is commonly used and covered by health insurance to treat symptoms of uterine fibroids in Taiwan. This retrospective cohort study compared the consumption of conventional western medicine and medical cost between Chinese medicine (CM) users and nonusers among patients with uterine fibroids.
  
  
  METHODS
  We extracted 44,122 patients diagnosed with uterine fibrosis between 1996 and 2010 from the National Health Insurance reimbursement database, which is a population-based database released by a government-run health insurance system. Multivariate linear regression models were used to find association between using Chinese medicine and the consumption of conventional medicine, and between using Chinese medicine and medical cost.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The total fibroid-related conventional western medicine consumed by CM users was less than that by nonusers (β = -10.49, P < 0.0001). Three categories of conventional medicines, including antianemics (-3.50 days/year/patient, P < 0.0001), hemostatics (- 1.89 days/year/patient, P < 0.0001), and hormone-related agents (-3.13 days/year/patient, P < 0.0001), were used less in patients who were CM users. Moreover, although using CM increased 16.9 USD per patient in CM users annually (P < 0.0001), the total annual medical cost for treating fibroid was 5610 USD less in CM users than in nonusers (P < 0.0001).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our results suggested that CM reduced the consumption of conventional medicine, and might be a potential therapeutic substitute for conventional western medicines to treat uterine fibroids with low cost.
authors.affiliation: Department of Chinese Medicine, China Medical University Hospital, No. 2 Yude road, Taichung, 40447, Taiwan. shanyusu@yahoo.com.tw.|School of Post-baccalaureate Chinese Medicine, College of Chinese Medicine, China Medical University, Taichung, 40402, Taiwan. shanyusu@yahoo.com.tw.
authors.forename: Shan-Yu
authors.initials: SY
authors.lastname: Su
authors.affiliation: College of Medicine, China Medical University, Taichung, 40402, Taiwan. A17776@mail.cmuh.org.tw.|Management Office for Health Data, China Medical University Hospital, Taichung, 40402, Taiwan. A17776@mail.cmuh.org.tw.
authors.forename: Chih-Hsin
authors.initials: CH
authors.lastname: Muo
authors.affiliation: Department of Community Health Sciences, UCLA Fielding School of Public Health, Los Angeles, CA, 90095-1772, USA. dmorisky@ucla.edu.
authors.forename: Donald E
authors.initials: DE
authors.lastname: Morisky
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D015331:Cohort Studies; D004365:Drugs, Chinese Herbal / Q000191:economics* / Q000627:therapeutic use; D005260:Female; D017048:Health Care Costs; D006490:Hemostatics / Q000191:economics / Q000627:therapeutic use; D006728:Hormones / Q000191:economics / Q000627:therapeutic use; D006801:Humans; D007348:Insurance, Health; D007889:Leiomyoma / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000191:economics; D008516:Medicine, Chinese Traditional / Q000191:economics* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D008875:Middle Aged; D010342:Patient Acceptance of Health Care; D008517:Phytotherapy / Q000191:economics* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D013624:Taiwan; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D004365:Drugs, Chinese Herbal; D006490:Hemostatics; D006728:Hormones