Direct-to-Consumer and Physician Promotion of Tegaserod Correlated With Physician Visits, Diagnoses, and Prescriptions

Abstract

Direct to consumer advertisement (DTCA) and physician promotion of drugs can influence patient and physician behaviors. We sought to determine the relationship between promotion of tegaserod and the number of office visits for abdominal pain, constipation, and bloating; diagnoses of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS); and tegaserod prescriptions