Adherence to Acromegaly Treatment and Analysis of the Related Factors-A Real-World Study in Bulgaria.

The purpose was to assess the level of medication adherence (MA) and related factors among individuals with acromegaly. The secondary goal was to assess the quality of life of patients and whether and how it correlates with the level of adherence. A prospective one-year study was conducted among patients with acromegaly diagnosed, treated, and monitored in the reference center for rare endocrine diseases in Bulgaria in 2021. Clinical data, patients reported outcomes, and health economics data were collected to define the predictors of non-adherence to medicines. Medication adherence level was assessed through a free Morisky-Green 4-item questionnaire. A total of 179 patients with acromegaly were observed. Approximately 62% were female, 50% were between 41 and 60 years, and the mean age at diagnosis was 40.4 years. The response rate to the questionnaires was 53% (n = 95; mean age 53.5 years, 73% female and 26% male). Patients with high levels of MA reported higher median values for the 36-Item Short Form Health Survey (SF-36) in comparison with those with low levels: 65.5 vs. 48.5 (p = 0.017). Similar results for EQ-5D-3L (3-level EuroQol 5D version) values and the level of MA were found: 0.656 vs. 0.796 (p = 0.0123). A low level of adherence was revealed in 34.7% of the patients, with no difference among different age groups. A significant positive determinant for adherence was years lived with acromegaly (OR = 5.625, 95% CI 1.7401-18.1832, p = 0.0039), as shorter duration was related to higher odds for high level of adherence. The current study demonstrates the importance of MA assessment for patients with acromegaly in Bulgaria. The medication adherence to the prescribed therapy among the observed group of patients with acromegaly varied as the percentage of adherent patients was around 65%. Still, there are low-adherent patients, and the responsible factors should be further investigated.

Economic Burden of Cervical Cancer in Bulgaria.

Bulgaria is among the European Union (EU) countries with the highest burden of cervical cancers and life expectancy below the EU average. The majority of cervical cancer cases (more than 95%) are caused by the human papillomavirus (HPV). The aim of this retrospective, cost of illness study is to identify direct healthcare costs of cervical cancer in Bulgaria from the payer perspective and to calculate indirect costs and the associated years of life lost. Costs data were sourced from the National Health Insurance Fund from January 2018 to December 2020. Years of life lost were calculated based on the country and gender-specific life expectancy. Indirect costs due to productivity loss were calculated using the human capital approach. The total treatment costs for 3540 patients with cervical cancer are EUR 5,743,657 (2018), EUR 6,377,508 (2019), and EUR 6,751,182 (2020). The costs associated with drug acquisition and administration accounted for the majority (63%) of total healthcare costs followed by hospital management costs (14%). An estimated total of 20,446 years of life were lost due to cervical cancer for the period 2018-2020. The costs of productivity losses are estimated at EUR 7,578,014. Our study showed that the economic burden of cervical cancer in Bulgaria is substantial. Focus on cervical cancer prevention via vaccination against the human papillomavirus, timely screening, early diagnosis, and higher vaccine coverage rates could reduce its economic burden in Bulgaria.

Regulatory Requirements for Food Supplements in the European Union and Bulgaria.

Data provided by the European Commission show that public expenditures for food supplements have been constantly increasing over the last decade. The aim of the present study was to analyze the major food supplements regulations in the European Union and in Bulgaria. Relevant publications were searched and found in MEDLINE/PubMed, Scopus Database, Web of Knowledge, and in Internet-based search with predefined keywords. Numerous authors support the opinion that there is a real risk that low quality products may be distributed in countries with poor production control. Bulgarian national legislation have 6 regulations with different legal force for provision of healthy and safe food supplements on the market. Currently, the European Community is concerned about food products, including FS, launched on the market because the citizens require reliable protection of their health. This concern provoked the European Parliament and the Council to undertake a number of legislative initiatives in the field of production and control of food products. It is necessary to set more precise quality and safety criteria in future strategies associated with those products.

Bulgarian Experience with Adverse Drug Reaction Reports from Patients and Consumers - Retrospective Data-base Study.

BACKGROUND: Since 2012, in compliance with the changes in the European legislation, the Bulgarian Drug Agency (BDA) has been receiving adverse drug reaction (ADR) reports directly from patients as well as from healthcare professionals and marketing authorization holders (MAH). Adverse reaction reports from patients and consumers have different characteristics from those sent by healthcare professionals. Moreover, they may require specific algorithm and assessment methods in order to be informative and beneficial to the pharmacovigilance system. AIM: The study aims to analyze the data-base of consumer reports in Bulgaria in order to distinguish and classify the main characteristics of the ADR reports from non-healthcare professionals. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In-depth analysis of the Bulgarian data-base of consumer ADR reports for 2012-2016 was conducted. The criteria include patient demographic characteristics, preferred method of reporting, seriousness and expectedness criteria and most frequently reported pharmacological groups. RESULTS: The data showed the current trends in patient reporting in the country. It also marked new courses for development of the spontaneous reporting system and collection of safety data. The analysis of the data-base showed a rather stable level of patient reporting with a tendency for constant growth every year. Bulgaria follows the world tendencies for high number of reports for insufficiently studied ADRs which meet the seriousness criteria. The review of the most frequently reported ATC codes could lead to the conclusion that the current pharmacovigi-lance methods are not sensitive enough for specific groups of medicines. CONCLUSIONS: The results from the conducted study confirm the importance of patient reporting as a valuable source of information on adverse drug reactions. Moreover, it draws the attention to the lack of more sensitive methods for evaluation of drug safety in specific pharmacological groups. Maintenance of consumer-friendly ADR reporting system and innovative assessment algorithms should be the future directions for development in post-marketing surveillance.