Table 3 Perception of value attributes of generic drugs according to gender, age and use of generic drugs
From: Perceptions of the population regarding generic drugs in Brazil: a nationwide survey
All (n = 5000) | Gender | Age (years) | Was taking or had taken GD in the past three months | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
N(%) | Male | Female | 15-34 | 35-54 | >54 | Yes | No | ||
Generic drugs are less effective (less powerful) than brand name drugs | I agree | 1520 (30.4) | 741 (30.5) | 779 (30.3) | 660 (27.2) | 521 (32.4) | 339 (35.2) | 642 (28,8) | 878 (31,7) |
I disagree | 2942 (58.8) | 1393 (57.3) | 1549 (60.3) | 1526 (62.8) | 918 (57.1) | 498 (51.7) | 1404 (63,0) | 1538 (55,5) | |
I don’t know/Did not answer | 538 (10.8) | 299 (12.3) | 239 (9.3) | 244 (10.0) | 168 (10.5) | 126 (13.1) | 184 (8,3) | 354 (12,8) | |
p-value a | 0.375 | <0.001 | <0.001 | ||||||
Brand drugs cause more side effects (adverse reactions) than generic drugs. | I agree | 1403 (28.1) | 694 (28.5) | 709 (27.6) | 670 (27.6) | 463 (28.8) | 270 (28.0) | 619 (27,8) | 784 (28,3) |
I disagree | 2798 (56.0) | 1328 (54.6) | 1470 (57.3) | 1396 (57.4) | 914 (56.9) | 488 (50.7) | 1283 (57,5) | 1515 (54,7) | |
I don’t know/Did not answer | 799 (16.0) | 411 (16.9) | 388 (15.1) | 364 (15.0) | 230 (14.3) | 205 (21.3) | 328 (14,7) | 471 (17,0) | |
p-value a | 0.220 | 0.275 | 0.287 | ||||||
Brand drugs take more time to the effect when compared to generic drugs | I agree | 632 (12.6) | 325 (13.4) | 307 (12.0) | 308 (12.7) | 192 (12.0) | 132 (13.7) | 261 (11,7) | 371 (13,4) |
I disagree | 3672 (73.4) | 1748 (71.8) | 1924 (74.9) | 1789 (73.6) | 1233 (76.7) | 650 (67.5) | 1698 (76,1) | 1974 (71,3) | |
I don’t know/Did not answer | 696 (13.9) | 360 (14.8) | 336 (13.1) | 333 (13.7) | 182 (11.3) | 181 (18.8) | 271 (12,2) | 425 (15,3) | |
p-value a | 0.076 | 0.097 | 0.021 | ||||||
Generic drugs are more suitable or appropriate than brand name drugs for mild, banal or less serious diseases. | I agree | 2049 (41.0) | 1024 (42.1) | 1025 (39.9) | 974 (40.1) | 670 (41.7) | 405 (42.1) | 904 (40,5) | 1145 (41,3) |
I disagree | 2344 (46.9) | 1106 (45.5) | 1238 (48.2) | 1181 (48.6) | 772 (48.0) | 391 (40.6) | 1104 (49,5) | 1240 (44,8) | |
I don’t know/Did not answer | 607 (12.1) | 303 (12.5) | 304 (11.8) | 275 (11.3) | 165 (10.3) | 167 (17.3) | 222 (10,0) | 385 (13,9) | |
p-value a | 0.065 | 0.023 | 0.048 | ||||||
Physicians prefer to prescribe generic drugs. | I agree | 2289 (45.8) | 1032 (42.4) | 1257 (49.0) | 1160 (47.7) | 706 (43.9) | 423 (43.9) | 1051 (47,1) | 1238 (44,7) |
I disagree | 2090 (41.8) | 1035 (42.6) | 1055 (41.1) | 978 (40.3) | 708 (44.1) | 404 (42.0) | 971 (43,5) | 1119 (40,4) | |
I don’t know/Did not answer | 621 (12.4) | 366 (15.0) | 255 (9.9) | 292 (12.0) | 193 (12.0) | 136 (14.1) | 208 (9,3) | 413 (14,9) | |
p-value a | 0.003 | 0.032 | 0.718 | ||||||
If there was not a price difference (generics are cheaper), I would always prefer taking a brand name drug. | I agree | 2962 (59.2) | 1438 (59.1) | 1524 (59.4) | 1403 (57.7) | 994 (61.8) | 565 (58.7) | 1363 (61,1) | 1599 (57,7) |
I disagree | 1666 (33.3) | 780 (32.1) | 886 (34.5) | 847 (34.9) | 504 (31.4) | 315 (32.7) | 743 (33,3) | 923 (33,3) | |
I don’t know/Did not answer | 372 (7.4) | 215 (8.8) | 157 (6.1) | 180 (7.4) | 109 (6.8) | 83 (8.6) | 124 (5,6) | 248 (9,0) | |
p-value a | 0.258 | 0.044 | 0.352 | ||||||