title: The Role of Patients' Age on Their Preferences for Choosing Additional Blood Pressure-Lowering Drugs: A Discrete Choice Experiment in Patients with Diabetes.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To assess whether patients' willingness to add a blood pressure-lowering drug and the importance they attach to specific treatment characteristics differ among age groups in patients with type 2 diabetes.
  
  
  METHODS
  Patients being prescribed at least an oral glucose-lowering and a blood pressure-lowering drug completed a questionnaire including a discrete choice experiment. This experiment contained choice sets with hypothetical blood pressure-lowering drugs and a no additional drug alternative, which differed in their characteristics (i.e. effects and intake moments). Differences in willingness to add a drug were compared between patients <75 years (non-aged) and ≥75 years (aged) using Pearson χ²-tests. Multinomial logit models were used to assess and compare the importance attached to the characteristics.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Of the 161 patients who completed the questionnaire, 151 (72%) could be included in the analyses (mean age 68 years; 42% female). Aged patients were less willing to add a drug than non-aged patients (67% versus 84% respectively; P = 0.017). In both age groups, the effect on blood pressure was most important for choosing a drug, followed by the risk of adverse drug events and the risk of death. The effect on limitations due to stroke was only significant in the non-aged group. The effect on blood pressure was slightly more important in the non-aged than the aged group (P = 0.043).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Aged patients appear less willing to add a preventive drug than non-aged patients. The importance attached to various treatment characteristics does not seem to differ much among age groups.
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Pharmacy and Pharmacology, University of Groningen, University Medical Center Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Sieta T
authors.initials: ST
authors.lastname: de Vries
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Pharmacy and Pharmacology, University of Groningen, University Medical Center Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Folgerdiena M
authors.initials: FM
authors.lastname: de Vries
authors.affiliation: Institute for Transport Studies, University of Leeds, Leeds, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Thijs
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Dekker
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Pharmacy and Pharmacology, University of Groningen, University Medical Center Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Flora M
authors.initials: FM
authors.lastname: Haaijer-Ruskamp
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Pharmacy and Pharmacology, University of Groningen, University Medical Center Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Dick
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: de Zeeuw
authors.affiliation: Department of Health Psychology, University of Groningen, University Medical Center Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Adelita V
authors.initials: AV
authors.lastname: Ranchor
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Pharmacy and Pharmacology, University of Groningen, University Medical Center Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Petra
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Denig
mesh_terms: D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000959:Antihypertensive Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D001794:Blood Pressure / Q000187:drug effects*; D002755:Choice Behavior; D003924:Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 / Q000150:complications* / Q000503:physiopathology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D016015:Logistic Models; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010349:Patient Compliance; D012307:Risk Factors; D020521:Stroke / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires
chemical_list: D000959:Antihypertensive Agents