To establish the pharmacological cost incurred by an urban Primary Health Care centre for treating osteoarthritis (OA) of the knee, including the main drugs used in its treatment and its contribution to the total cost of each group studied.
A cross-sectional, descriptive study of 188 patients diagnosed with OA of the knee. After counting the total number of pre-packaged pharmaceutical products assigned to each patient over one year, the average cost of each product was calculated. The ratio between the total cost and the total number of patients was then calculated, which gave the cost per patient per year.
NSAIDs (non-steroids anti-inflammatory drugs) were the most frequently prescribed. SYSADOAs (symptomatic slow-acting drugs for osteoarthritis) rated second in both frequency and cost. Acetaminophen rated third. Topical treatments, "other analgesics" and proton pump inhibitors (PPIs), cost much less. The total pharmacological cost per patient per year thus amounted to 151.6 € (SD:±101,9).
The pharmacological cost for treatment of osteoarthritis of the knee incurs an increase in cost of health resources in Primary Care. The total pharmacological cost per patient per year was 151.60 €. In our centre, NSAIDs account for most of the pharmacological costs in the treatment of osteoarthritis of the knee.