title: Prescription patterns of Chinese herbal products for patients with sleep disorder and major depressive disorder in Taiwan.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Chinese herbal products (CHPs) are commonly prescribed for sleep disorder and major depressive disorder (MDD). The aim of this study was to investigate the prescription patterns of CHPs and Western medicine for patients with these disorders in Taiwan, and analyze the frequency of using single herbs (SHs) and herbal formulas (HFs).
  
  
  METHODS
  In this retrospective population-based study secondary data analysis was performed using data from Taiwan's Longitudinal Health Insurance Database (LHID) between January 2007 and December 2011. In total, 1000,000 beneficiaries from the LHID were randomly selected from the 2010 registry for beneficiaries of the National Health Insurance Research Database. Patients with sleep disorder and MDD according to the International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision, Clinical Modification codes 307.40 and 311, respectively.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Among a total of 11,030 patients with sleep disorder, 9619 used Western medicine, 1334 used CHPs, and 77 used both, Among a total of 11,571 patients with MDD, 11,389 used Western medicine, 131 used CHPs, and 51 used both. Regardless of disorder type, women were predominant The majority of the patients were aged 22-44 years, had a monthly income of NT$17,281-NT$22,800, and lived in an area with Level 1 and Level 2 urbanization. Of the patients with sleep disorder, 1411 had used CHPs and visited a clinic 5298 times on average. Of the patients with MDD, 182 had used CHPs and visited a clinic 755 times on average. The three most commonly used SHs and HFs were Ziziphi Spinosae Semen, Polygoni Multiflori Caulis, and Polygalae Radix, and Jia-Wei-Xiao-Yao-San, Suan-Zao-Ren-Tang, and Chai-Hu-Chia-Lung-Ku-Mu-Li-Tang, respectively.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Chinese herbal products including SHs and HFs are prescribed for patients with sleep disorder and MDD. However, the efficacy and safety of CHPs for sleep disorder and MDD need to be further evaluated.
authors.affiliation: Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Chaoyang District, Beijing 100029, China.
authors.forename: Yi-Lin
authors.initials: YL
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmacology, Chung Shan Medical University, Taichung, Taiwan; Department of Pharmacy, Chung Shan Medical University Hospital, Taichung, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Chien-Ying
authors.initials: CY
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.affiliation: Department of Health Service Administration, College of Public Health, China Medical University, Taichung, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Kuang-Hua
authors.initials: KH
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmacology, Chung Shan Medical University, Taichung, Taiwan; Department of Pharmacy, Chung Shan Medical University Hospital, Taichung, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Yu-Hsiang
authors.initials: YH
authors.lastname: Kuan
authors.affiliation: Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Chaoyang District, Beijing 100029, China. Electronic address: cmwg185@sina.com.
authors.forename: Ming
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Chen
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003865:Major Depressive Disorder / Q000188:drug therapy*; D004365:Drugs, Chinese Herbal / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D008517:Phytotherapy; D010818:Practice Patterns, Physicians'; D012893:Sleep Wake Disorders / Q000188:drug therapy*; D013624:Taiwan; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D004365:Drugs, Chinese Herbal
keywords: Benzodiazepine (PubChem CID: 134664); Chinese herbal product (CHP); Clomipramine (PubChem CID: 2801); Doxepin (PubChem CID: 667477); Escitalopram (PubChem CID: 146571); Fluoxetine (PubChem CID: 62857); Imipramine (PubChem CID: 3696); Jia-Wei-Xiao-Yao-San; Major depressive disorder (MDD); Maprotiline (PubChem CID: 4011); National Health Insurance Research Database (NHIRD); Paroxetine (PubChem CID: 43815); Sertraline (PubChem CID: 68617); Sleep disorder; Ziziphi spinosae semen; Zolpidem (PubChem CID: 5732)