Calcineurin inhibitors and related medicines: a cohort study examining England’s primary care prescription changes during the COVID-19 pandemic (January 2019 to March 2021)

• Published in: Daru 2022-06, Vol.30 (1), p.59-66
• Main Author: Barrett, Ravina
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Biomedical and Life Sciences; Biomedicine; Calcineurin Inhibitors - therapeutic use; Cohort analysis; Cohort Studies; Communicable Disease Control; Coronaviruses; COVID-19; COVID-19 - epidemiology; COVID-19 Drug Treatment; Cyclosporine - therapeutic use; Drug dosages; Graft Rejection - drug therapy; Humans; Immunosuppressive Agents - therapeutic use; Medicinal Chemistry; Pandemics; Pharmaceutical Sciences/Technology; Pharmacology/Toxicology; Prescriptions; Primary Health Care; Research Article; Sirolimus - therapeutic use; Tacrolimus - therapeutic use; Time series
• ISSN: 2008-2231; 1560-8115; 2008-2231
• DOI: 10.1007/s40199-021-00431-7

Purpose To examine the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on calcineurin inhibitors and related prescriptions for community patients in England. Methods Data from all primary-care patients who had calcineurin inhibitors prescriptions, dispensed in the community in England were included. Descriptive statistics and interrupted time series analysis over 27 months (15 months before and 12 months after 1 st lockdown) was evaluated. Results Descriptive statistics show that mean values have declined since the pandemic’s onset. Over the 27 months: mean Tacrolimus 865,045 doses, standard deviation (SD) 76,147 doses, with 95% CI 834,923, 895,168, (min 567,508, max 1,010,900), ciclosporin 315,496 doses, SD 40,094, 95% CI 299,635, 331,356 (min 191,281, max 382,253) and sirolimus 21,384 doses, SD 2,610, 95% CI 20,352, 22,417 (min 13,022, max 26,156). Analysis of variance between the pre- and post- periods show significant variations in quantities of tacrolimus F 7.432, p = 0.012, ciclosporin F 33.147, p