The Effects of Choice on Generic and Branded Ibuprofen Medication Effectiveness and Side Effects

Abstract

Recent shifts towards patient-centred medicine have placed new emphasis on increasing patient participation in treatment decision-making during medical interactions. Patients, now more than ever, are given greater decisional control over their treatment options. While considerable research has been devoted to understanding treatment choice and treatment outcome, the effects of choice of active pain medication has yet to be studied. Therefore, the primary aim of the study was to investigate the effects of having a choice of generic and branded medication on medication effectiveness and side effects. A secondary aim of the study was to investigate whether or not perceptions of generics influenced the use of generic medication. This was done through analysing the responses to a questionnaire. A sample of 78 adults who experience regular headaches were randomised either to choose between branded or generic ibuprofen medication to take to treat their next headache or were assigned medication. Headache pain, number of side effects, and side effect intensity one hour after taking ibuprofen tablets was assessed. Information was also collected on participants’ perceptions of generics, desire for control, and baseline symptom reporting. The current study found that pain relief and medication side effects were not significantly different between participants who used generic and branded ibuprofen tablets. A second key finding suggests that participants who chose pain medication reported similar pain relief and medication side effects compared with those who did not have a choice of medication. In addition, the study also found that treatment choice reduced medication effectiveness among individuals with a low desire control. However, treatment choice did not influence treatment outcome for individuals with a high desire of control. Lastly, the study found that participants with positive perceptions of generics were significantly more likely to choose generic than branded ibuprofen medication. These results underpin the notion that people have positive perceptions of generics for treating minor illnesses because choice of pain medication or medication type did not influence treatment outcome. The study concludes that choice of branded or generic ibuprofen medication does not influence medication effectiveness or side effects.