By Feride Frech, PhD, MPH, Senior Director, US HEOR & RWE, Eisai Inc, and Timothy Juday, Director, US HEOR & RWE, Eisai Inc.
Insomnia, the most common sleep-wake disorder, is prevalent in the general population and is associated with significant human and economic cost.
The prevalence of insomnia increases with age.
Sleep medications may contribute to the risk of falls in this population. Falls are a main case of morbidity and disability in older adults; more than one in four people 65 or older fall each year and falling once doubles the chances of a recurring fall.
This retrospective cohort study sought to compare health care resource utilization (HCRU) and costs between elderly Medicare patients (age 65 years and older) treated with common insomnia medications and a matched control group of elderly Medicare patients (age 65 years and older) with no sleep disorders, and to estimate incremental HCRU and costs associated with falls.