Introduction:

The high prevalence of musculoskeletal diseases (MSDs) in certain populaion groups may cause a high consumption of non steroideal antiinflamatory drugs (NSAIDs). The present study aims to identify the continuous consumers of NSAIDs in a cohort of workers, who mainly perform manual tasks, analyzing the use of other drugs prescribed for the treatment of musculoskeletal pain (MSP).

Material and methods:

Observational retrospective study. It has been analyzed data of all subjects, included on the AWHS (Aragon Workers Health Study) cohort, who received at least one NSAID prescription during 2016. It has been calculated the rate of use of NSAID, as well as the number of DDD per 1000 inhabitants per day (DHD). It has been identified continuous consumers, as those who used 182 defined daily dose (DDD) or more. For this group, it has been analyzed all prescriptions including other drugs used to treat MSP.

Results:

The rate of use of NSAIDs in the AWHS cohort in 2016 was 41.6% (95% CI: 40.1%-42.7%), being higher in women (47.0%, 95% CI: 41.9%-52.1%). 5.7% of NSAID users were continuous consumers. Among them, etoricoxib was the most used NSAIDs (4,9 DHD), followed by ibuprofen (4,0 DHD). Refering to other drugs prescribed for MSP, the prescription rate of tramadol for continuous consumers was 24.2% (95% CI: 16.9%-23.3%) and benzodiazepines 3.0% (95% CI: 0.1%-6.0%).

Conclusions:

NSAID consumption in the AWHS cohort appears to be higher than in general population. Continuous consumers preferably used NSAIDs with lower cardiovascular risk. The consumption rate of weak opioids was high for continuous users.

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