Research Article

Cost-Effectiveness of Oral Antidiabetic Drugs: A Prospective Multicenter Study of Real-World Patients

Table 1

Description of variables.

VariablesDescription

Outcomes
HbA1c < 6.5%1 if HbA1c < 6.5% at the last follow-up; 0 otherwise
Inci. of hypoglycemiaIncidence of reported hypoglycemia in one year (spanning the period of all four follow-up surveys)
EQ-5D HRQoLHRQoL measured through EQ-5D
Inpatient costInpatient cost in one year, including all costs related to tests, medication, and treatment in hospitals (unit: 1000 yuan)
Outpatient costOutpatient cost in one year, including all costs related to tests, medication, and treatment in clinics (unit: 1000 yuan)
OTC drug costOTC drug cost in one year (unit: 1000 yuan)
Total costInpatient cost + outpatient cost + OTC drug cost (unit: 1000 yuan)

Treatments
MetforminUse of metformin alone
Xiaoke PillUse of Xiaoke Pill alone
TCMsUse of other TCMs (with no chemical substance, other than Xiaoke Pill) alone
GliclazideUse of gliclazide alone
AcarboseUse of acarbose alone
Xiaoke Pill+Use of Xiaoke Pill in combination with other agents
GlibenclamideUse of glibenclamide alone
OthersAll other medication therapies

Control variables
AgeAge categories: 1, younger than 50 (reference group); 2, aged between 50 and 60; 3, aged between 60 and 70; 4, older than 70
Gender0, female; 1, male
EducationEducation levels: 1, primary or below (reference group); 2, lower secondary; 3, upper secondary; 4, tertiary or above
City of residence1, Beijing (reference group); 2, Shenyang; 3, Chengdu; 4, Nanjing; 5, Guangzhou
IncomeMonthly income: 1, less than 1000 yuan (reference group); 2, between 1000 and 2000 yuan; 3, more than 2000 yuan
Medical insurance1, urban resident basic medical insurance (URBMI) (reference group); 2, urban employee basic medical insurance (UEBMI); 3, new rural cooperative medical insurance (NRCM); 4, government insurance
Currently smoking1 if smoking at the time of baseline survey, 0 otherwise
Currently during1 if consuming alcohol at the time of baseline survey, 0 otherwise
Any physical exercise1 if doing any physical exercise at the time of baseline survey, 0 otherwise
Diet control1 if doing diet control at the time of baseline survey, 0 otherwise
DurationDuration of diabetes. 1, less than five years (reference group); 2, between 5 and 10 years; 3, more than ten years
Heart disease1 if heart disease, 0 otherwise
Hypertension1 if hypertension, 0 otherwise
Dyslipidemia1 if dyslipidemia, 0 otherwise
Stroke1 if stroke, 0 otherwise
BMI1 if BMI ≥ 24 at the time of baseline survey, 0 otherwise
HbA1c1 if hemoglobin A1c < 6.5% at the time of baseline survey, 0 otherwise
FBS1 if fasting blood sugar level <7 mmol/L at the time of baseline survey, 0 otherwise
Hypoglycemia1 if reporting hypoglycemia at the time of baseline survey, 0 otherwise
SBP1 if systolic blood pressure ≥ 140 at the time of baseline survey, 0 otherwise
DBP1 if diastolic blood pressure ≥ 90 at the time of baseline survey, 0 otherwise
TC1 if total cholesterol ≥ 5.2 mmol/L at the time of baseline survey, 0 otherwise
TG1 if triglycerides ≥ 1.7 mmol/L at the time of baseline survey, 0 otherwise
HRQoL1 if EQ-5D HRQoL ≥ 0.9 at the time of baseline survey, 0 otherwise