Bérard Anick, Lacasse Anaïs
Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Montreal, Montreal, Canada, 2Research Center, CHU Sainte-Justine, Montreal, Canada.
Can J Clin Pharmacol. 2009 Summer;16(2):e360-9. Epub 2009 Jun 24.
The RAMQ prescription claims database (RAMQ-Rx) is increasingly being used in perinatal pharmacoepidemiologic studies; but, there are reasons to believe that results generated with the RAMQ-Rx might not be generalizable to all patient populations.
Compare characteristics between pregnant women insured by the RAMQ-Rx and those insured by a private drug insurance plan.
A prospective study performed within the population of pregnant women receiving prenatal care at different obstetrics and gynecology clinics affiliated to the University of Montreal, Canada, was conducted from October 2004 to March 2006. Women were eligible if they were > or =18 years of age, < or =16 weeks of gestation at the time of their first prenatal visit, and able to read and understand French or English. Eligible women were asked to fill out a self-administered questionnaire.
Three hundred and sixty-three women met inclusion criteria, of which 99 (27%) had RAMQ-Rx coverage, and 264 (73%) had a private drug insurance coverage. Compared to those who were covered by private drug insurance plans, those insured by the RAMQ-Rx were younger (30.7yrs vs. 32.1yrs; P=0.03), more likely to be immigrant (60% vs. 24%; P<0.01), and have a household income below poverty level (39% vs. 2%; P<0.01). They were also less likely to be Caucasian (69% vs. 86%; P<0.01), employed (51% vs. 87%; P<.01), and have a post-secondary education (76% vs. 95%; P<0.01). No differences were observed on smoking status and alcohol use during pregnancy.
There are substantial differences between pregnant women insured by the RAMQ-Rx and those insured by private drug insurance plans. However, these differences will most likely limit generalizability, but not internal validity, of studies using data from the RAMQ-Rx database.
魁北克医疗保险局（RAMQ）处方报销数据库（RAMQ-Rx）越来越多地用于围产期药物流行病学研究；但是，有理由相信使用RAMQ-Rx得出的结果可能无法推广到所有患者群体。
比较RAMQ-Rx参保孕妇与私人药品保险计划参保孕妇的特征。
2004年10月至2006年3月，在加拿大蒙特利尔大学附属的不同妇产科诊所接受产前护理的孕妇群体中进行了一项前瞻性研究。年龄大于或等于18岁、首次产前检查时妊娠小于或等于16周、能够阅读和理解法语或英语的女性符合入选标准。符合条件的女性被要求填写一份自填式问卷。
363名女性符合纳入标准，其中99名（27%）有RAMQ-Rx保险，264名（73%）有私人药品保险。与私人药品保险计划参保者相比，RAMQ-Rx参保者更年轻（30.7岁对32.1岁；P=0.03），更可能是移民（60%对24%；P<0.01），家庭收入低于贫困线（39%对2%；P<0.01）。她们也不太可能是白种人（69%对86%；P<0.01），就业（51%对87%；P<0.01），接受过高等教育（76%对95%；P<0.01）。在孕期吸烟状况和饮酒方面未观察到差异。
RAMQ-Rx参保孕妇与私人药品保险计划参保孕妇之间存在显著差异。然而，这些差异很可能会限制使用RAMQ-Rx数据库数据的研究的普遍性，但不会影响其内部有效性。
