Morelli D, Koenigsberg M R
Department of Family Medicine, State University of New York, Buffalo.
J Fam Pract. 1992 Jan;34(1):42-8.
The distribution of sample medications to physicians by pharmaceutical manufacturers has been regulated by Congress and extensively critiqued in the medical literature. Manufacturers distributed 2.4 billion samples in 1988, yet there are no published reports on the clinical use of sample medications.
A 4-week descriptive study was conducted that catalogued the contents of a sample medication collection in a family practice residency model office, calculated the value of the sample collection (average wholesale price [AWP]), and monitored dispensing of medication samples.
The collection initially contained 5546 samples with an AWP of $19,273. A total of 1012 samples worth $4154 was withdrawn from the collection during the study period. Patients received 548 of the sample packages in 105 dispensements ($2583), physicians or their families received 169 samples in 44 dispensements ($603), others received 26 samples in 6 dispensements ($152), and the destination of 269 samples ($816) was unknown. When a prescription was written at the time that a sample was dispensed, it was almost always for the same brand-name medication.
Although a majority of medications dispensed were given to patients, approximately one third of the value of the medications withdrawn either went to physicians and their families or had an unknown destination. The high association of sample dispensing and simultaneous prescribing of the same brand-name drug supports the contention that sampling influences physician-prescribing habits. Further research should define how the availability of free sample medications affects physician-prescribing practices.
制药厂商向医生分发样本药物一直受到国会监管，且在医学文献中受到广泛批评。1988年厂商分发了24亿份样本，但尚无关于样本药物临床使用情况的公开报告。
开展了一项为期4周的描述性研究，对一家家庭医疗住院医师模式办公室的样本药物收集情况进行编目，计算样本收集的价值（平均批发价[AWP]），并监测药物样本的发放情况。
该收集最初包含5546份样本，AWP为19273美元。在研究期间，共从该收集中取出了价值4154美元的1012份样本。患者在105次发放中收到了548份样本包（2583美元），医生或其家属在44次发放中收到了169份样本（603美元），其他人在6次发放中收到了26份样本（152美元），269份样本（816美元）的去向不明。当发放样本时开具了处方，几乎总是针对同一品牌的药物。
虽然发放的大多数药物都给了患者，但取出药物价值的约三分之一要么给了医生及其家属，要么去向不明。样本发放与同时开具同一品牌药物之间的高度关联支持了抽样会影响医生处方习惯这一观点。进一步的研究应确定免费样本药物的可得性如何影响医生的处方行为。
